Tender Sea: Revamped
by Strange Obsession
Summary: Rewritten version! Naruto Namikaze-Uzumaki grew up to become one of the strongest Kunoichi that had ever existed. Recently married and close to achieving her lifelong ambition, everything is ripped from her grasp. Friends have fallen and the Elemental Nations is no more. She chooses to abandon her identity and go back to fix it all. Time-travel!, Fem!Naru, Eventual Kaka!Naru.
1. In Which They Meet

**A/N** Hi again!

It's been a little over two weeks and the rewrite is in full swing.

I've finished the prologue and the first few chapters and I guess the best way to describe it is 'Same-same but a little bit different'...

:D

There are parts exactly the same as the original and there are bits I've changed and some which are completely new. I just hope you all like it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

I've posted a link to the full (It's in four parts) prologue at the end of this chapter so if you want just scroll down and click~

Well, let's see if I do better this time round :)

* * *

**~Prologue – IN WHICH THE TWO MEET**

**October 10****th**** – 5****th**** anniversary of Kyuubi no Yoko's defeat... Naruto aged 5.**

"Is it really ok for me to have this?" A young girl with two blonde pigtails asked. In her hands was a candied apple which shone a sparkling red in the festival lights. She held it tentatively in front of her, eyeing it warily yet hungrily.

"Of course!" The giver responded. He was just an average villager whose stall she had come across. The blonde had been caught staring at his wares so of course he offered a sweet treat to the small child. "Go ahead, I promise you it's delicious." He smiled but she felt something wrong. Naru quickly shook her head, shaking out the suspicious thoughts.

_He's was kind enough to give it to me so I shouldn't be rude._She thought to herself, _plus this looks really delicious!_ She sniffed the apple, smelling nothing but the saccharide, sugary sweetness that covered it, and took a bite. The candy melted in her mouth and the apple within was still fresh and crunchy. Still, she couldn't understand why it felt so wrong.

"It's delicious." She complimented making the man smile.

"Good, why don't you eat more? If you finish it I'll give you another." The girl wolfed down the first apple, not noticing as the festival goers seemed to stop what they were doing to watch. "Here." The vendor handed her another apple which finished just as fast.

"Thanks Ojisan!" Naru chirped, "But why are you giving me all of these?" She asked as he handed her a third apple.

"Honestly? I just wanted to see how many you could eat…" His response confused her as much as the sneer afterwards unsettled her. All of a sudden the young girl was very aware of the gazes staring her down as a strange buzzing filled her head. She dropped the half-eaten candied apple in her hands as she felt the energy leave her body, forcing her to kneel as her limbs soon became too weak to hold her up. From the corner of her vision she saw a black blur dash out but it was hard to distinguish who it was as her eyes refused to focus.

"What did you do to her?" A dog masked Anbu growled out, choking the man as he roughly grabbed his neck and held him up in the air.

"I-I didn't do shit!" The vendor managed to spit out, "The demon brat ate it of its own free will!" The Anbu cursed under his breath and flung the man to the side, sending him through the weak, wooden walls of his own stall.

"Tenzo, escort him to Ibiki and the alert Hokage-sama, I'll take Naru to the hospital." A second Anbu jumped down from the roof and threw the now unconscious perpetrator over his shoulder. Tenzo gave a small nod of acknowledgment to his leader before disappearing in a swirl of leaves. The remaining Anbu scanned the area with disgust, concealed by the Konoha standardized mask. "What the hell are you all looking at?" He barked at the watching crowd, "Disperse." The civilians were quick to follows his order, scrambling to get away before they also garnered a session with the famed torturer.

"Inu?" Naru asked weakly as the Anbu came to crouch beside her.

"Don't you remember what Hokage-sama always tells you? You should never take candy from a stranger, you silly child." He hid his worry under exasperation.

"Sorry…I for-got." Her tongue felt heavy in her mouth and it was hard to talk. Her senses dulled and she could no longer see anything but a haze nor hear anything except for a strange buzz. The only thing she didn't expect was the excruciating pain that came after the frightening numbing.

"Naru…Naru!" She stopped responding and her eyes glazed over before she let out an agonizing scream.

- - - - - _Mindscape_ - - - - -

…drip…drip…drip

"Urhg?" The girl groaned and waited for her senses to return. The air smelt of stagnant water, and she was lying in some sort of cool liquid. A constant dripping echoed around the area and as her blue eyes began to refocus she was greeted with darkness. "…Where am I?" She pushed herself up and out of what she hoped was water before pressing forward in the direction of a red glow. The closer she got the more the red light bathed her surroundings, revealing the sides of the tunnel she seemed to be in. Her eyes fixed onto an opening in front of her and her pace quickened slightly only to falter as she reached a dead end marked by large jail-like bars. There were big enough for her to easily fit through the gap but whatever was behind it gave off a foreboding feeling. She turned her body back the way she came only to see her only exit sealed off by a wall, as if it had never existed. "No way," She dashed back to feel for any cracks or openings, "But it was just there! I don't like it here! Let me out dammit!" the girl pounded her small fist against the wall futilely.

**_"Shut up, you pitiful human."_** A deep voice resonated around the room and she quickly tried to find the source.

"Who the hell are you!?" The girl shouted at the giant cage, "And where am I?"

**_"Insolent runt,"_** the voice growled,**_ "What a dim, little, thing you are."_**

"Huh? Stop making fun of me," Her fear of being in the unknown was translated into anger towards the mocking stranger, "I dare you to say it again."

**_"Of course, come closer and I will spell it out right in front of you."_** Unwisely, she did take a few brave steps forward when a large, red, clawed hand shot out.

"Gah!" She stumbled back, falling back into the water. "What the hell was that for?!"

**_"Was it not obvious?"_** A monstrous, fox-like face pressed itself against the edge of the bars,**_ "I was hoping to kill you."_**

"Ahh!" The five-year old trembled and pointed a shaky finger at the beast, "What kind of monster are you?!"

**_"Monster?"_** The giant fox scoffed,**_ "I am a much greater being than you could possibly imagine. I am the great Kyuubi no Kitsune."_** The fox smirked showing off its rows of sharp teeth.

"The…Kyuubi?" The world around her shook as the girl tried to comprehend the knowledge or come up with any other possibilities. The walls collapsed began to collapse inwards and the floor below her feet crumbled sending her falling down into the darkness but all she could think of were the demonic red eyes of the most fearsome beast in history.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

"So what happened?" The Hokage asked wearily as he seated himself next to the unconscious girl on the hospital bed.

"Poison," The dog masked Anbu replied tensely, "A civilian male somehow acquired one of Fire country's worst toxin from god knows where and disguised it with sugar. He came up to Naru during the festival offered them to her. She managed to get through two and a half of the laced apples before she collapsed."

"And where is he now?" He didn't like to think his people were capable of hospitalizing a child but at the same time he understood the flaws of the human race all too well.

"Tenzo took him to Ibiki." The Anbu honestly thought the civilian deserved every moment of torture for having ever dared to hurt his charge. "We'll have the name of his supplier within a matter of moments.

"Good." The Hokage nodded approvingly.

"…Jiji?" The patient slowly awoke from her restorative sleep.

"Ah, Naru-chan, you're awake." Sarutobi smiled as he spoke to her in a soft, grandfatherly tone.

"Jiji, what happened?" Naru looked around, blanching at the white of Konoha's hospital. Her body still felt a little stiff and her mind disoriented as she tried to piece together what had happened.

"You were poisoned." He said with a stern look, "Didn't I tell you to be careful of strangers?"

"B-but," She looked a picture of sadness as her eyes began to water, "I thought he might have remembered that it was my birthday…"

"Naru," He gave her a pitying look, "I'm sorry I couldn't spend the day with you like I promised but-"

"You were busy." She finished for him, "I understand. Being Hokage is a tough job for an old man like you. But don't worry, you just have to hang on a little longer before I take that hat and you can live in peaceful retirement!" The Anbu was amused with the amount of…affectionate disrespect she showed and how fast the girl rebounded from the sad moment.

"I look forward to it." The current Hokage responded with a smile. "I might have not been able to stay with you today but I did get you a gift."

"Really!" She bounced excitedly on the bed, "What is it?!"

"Here," She was handed a rather heavy box filled neatly with kunai and shuriken.

"Wow! Thanks Jiji!" She looked at them with anticipation, "I'll be taking that hat sooner than I thought." Sarutobi chuckled at her enthusiasm.

"That's not all," He continued "Inu here has kindly volunteered to help you with any of you training. Just promise me you won't go off on your own."

"I promise. And thank you Inu-san!" Naru shot the Anbu a wide smile which earned her a hair ruffle.

"No problem." The Anbu replied.

"Well, I better get back to my paperwork," The Hokage sighed as he stood slowly, "Is there anything else you need Naru-chan?"

"Oh!" She seemed to have remembered an important fact, "The Yondaime! Did he really kill the Kyuubi? All by himself?" She asked innocently not noticing how the other occupants of the room seemed to stiffen.

"Well he wasn't all by himself," Sarutobi began bit by bit, "He had the whole village with him and a boss of the toad summons, but yes he did defeat the Kyuubi no Kitsune. Why do you ask?"

"I was just wondering," She answered simply, "If I want to surpass him I'll have to get that much stronger then!" The old man pushed any suspicions out of his mind.

"Indeed. Work hard." He said before exiting the room. Inu continued to stand by the bedside, obviously keeping a very tight guard, but his silence allowed her time to think.

_Jiji wouldn't lie to me…_

It was later that week that Naru went to the library to search up the definition of defeat.

* * *

**2 years after – Academy graduation day... Naruto age 7.**

"How much further?" A rather ordinary man asked, huffing slightly and adjusting the sack over his shoulder.

"We're here." One of his companions answered, leading him towards a cliff face. The other stayed behind silently, watching with a look of glee on his face.

"Thank god, I was starting to get a bit worn out." He dropped the sac onto the ground and began pulling it over the edge with his friends helping to speed up the process.

"After the rain today the Naka River is looking particularly violent." His companion said, peering over the edge to see the violent currents.

"Perfect." The previously silent man commented, giving the sack a harsh kick that finally sent it over the edge.

"It's done. Let's get back, my wife was planning a celebratory dinner tonight," He led the other man back in the direction of Konoha.

"Oh? Did your son graduate too? Congrats." The three walked backed happily, with small amounts of chatter passing between them.

* * *

Falling from edge of the cliff the bonds around the sack loosened, and its contents fell out. Blonde hair which fluttered in the wind, rocks bound to the small limbs and the glint of metal before it was all lost in the white water.

- - - - - _Mindscape_ - - - - -

"Here again…" Naru muttered as she found herself back in that sewer-like place. Once again there was only one way to go, but with the knowledge of what awaited her she hesitated. But maybe, she thought, maybe she would figure out the secret that seemed to revolve around her. With that purpose in mind she strode confidently up to the familiar cavern held the nine tailed beast.

**_"Back again?"_** The Kyuubi made no attempt to hide himself, showing his furred face right from the start. Naru made sure she was well out his reach, her eyes never straying from the cunning fox.

"Kyuubi." She greeted, with a nod.

**_"Good, at least you remembered."_** He liked the respect he received though wished there was a bit more fear in her eyes.

"Where are we?" She asked, "And if you really are the Kyuubi why aren't you dead?" The fox scoffed at her, his tails swishing in agitation.

**_"Dead? You speak as if you mortals ever had a chance to kill me. Do not think so highly of your weak little selves. As for where we are, are you so stupid that you do not know?"_**

"Tell me." Naru growled out. It was bad enough that she was in an unknown place. The fact that she had a cynical monster with her just made it worse.

**_"You dare order me?!"_** His claw show forward, slashing the area dangerously close to her,**_ "I see it is not only your ignorance which knows no bounds but your impertinence as well!"_**

"I just want to know where the hell I am and why the hell you're not dead!" The girl shouted as she lost whatever composure she had. The Kyuubi sat back on his haunches and sent her a mocking smile.

**_"Why should I tell you, runt?"_**

"Because!" She shouted at him. He merely ignored her, deciding his time was better spent asleep._ Bastard fox,_ she thought, slightly surprised it sounded so loud.

**_"Do not insult me human runt."_** The Kyuubi growled.

"How did you hear that?" Naru questioned. _Didn't I think it?_

**_"Shut up and go away."_** He responded. **_"It is hard to sleep when you are being so loud."_**

_YOU SUCK, YOU SUCK, YOU SUCK, YOU SUCK, YOU SUCK!_

**_"SILENCE!"_** The fox roared. This time Naru completely ignored him, sitting on the floor cross-legged with a thoughtful expression across her face. Memories flitted past and it was more than once that she could remember villagers muttering 'demon' as she passed. The fact that the fox could hear her thoughts only added to her suspicions and growing sense of dread.

**_"So you finally understand."_** The fox stated, watching the human child that was his jailor.

"But it can't be!" She denied, "No way! How is it even possible?"

**_"Oh, you humans are known for making the impossible happen, especially in dire situations."_** He gave her a calculative look. **_"It is written in your history books is it not? You had better thank your precious Yondaime."_** Naru felt her world tear a little. To think that the man she admired and looked up to the most had done something like this to her. It was incomprehensible.

**_"I was not lying when I said to be thankful,"_** the fox continued,**_ "In fact why don't you stretch that gratitude to myself? After all without me you would be dead countless times already."_**

"If he hadn't done something like that I wouldn't have been put in those situations!" The blonde exclaimed. In the large gap in her memories, from graduating to Iruka's promise of ramen, it was easy to assume she had been attacked again. Which meant right now, she was most likely dying, again.

**_"You really are stupid, for someone like you to be my container…what a disappointment."_** She bristled as the words hit her particularly deep. She wasn't a disappointment. She was going to make her precious people proud.

"…Do you know why? Why the Fourth chose me?" She asked, unusually sedate.

**_"I do not share the same mindset as you foolish beings, therefore, I can only speculate."_** He answered, being rather civil.

"Then, why do you think he chose me?" Naru reworded the question.

**_"… I'll make a trade with you,"_** the fox offered,**_ "Anything I know as long as you remove this tag."_** A lone tail swept out of the cage and directed her attention to a small slip of paper. The girl vaguely recognized the design as the same one that appeared on her stomach whenever she accessed her chakra.

"What happens if I remove it?" She questioned. The fox stayed silent and it was all the answer she needed. As much as her curiosity burned she wouldn't risk a questionable deal.

**_"Are you fine with not knowing?"_** The fox probed. It was obvious she wasn't but she would do.

"I'll ask Jiji." Naru huffed.

**_"And how will he respond?"_** His face loomed closer as he spoke, "**_The same Jiji that hid my existence from you?"_** She faltered.

"I'll have to ask and see his answer myself then!" The blonde exclaimed.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

Her second awakening was rather abrupt, and she could feel a painful burning in her lungs. Instinctively she coughed, vomiting out a decent amount of water.

"Are you alright?" The asker was an older teen with onyx eyes, and black hair tied in a low ponytail. Despite his young age he was dressed in the customary, Konoha-issued Anbu gear with his mask hanging by his waist.

"Yes," She shivered slightly as the wind swept past her drenched body, "Thank you for saving me, Weasel-san." It was strange to actually see his face for once. She was sure if he didn't have his mask she wouldn't be able to recognize him by his looks. Of course his voice, no matter how little he spoke, was something she would be able to pick out due to the unique calming tenor.

"It's fine." He returned his mask to its usual position and gently picked her up, providing a small amount of bodily warmth. "I'll take you to the hospital." He continued, "Do you remember what happened?"

"No," She felt the back of her head, wincing at a particularly tender spot, "I must have been knocked out."

"I see."

* * *

"Jiji!" Naru skipped into the Hokage office, showing no effects of the previous life-endangering situation.

"Ah, Naru-chan," Sarutobi sighed in relief, "It's good to see you're doing well."

"Mmhm! Plus, look!" She held up her headband for him to see, "I graduated as rookie of the year and Iruka promised that he'd buy me ramen tomorrow…as much as I want too."

"Congratulations." The old Hokage smiled but wavered slightly at the end, "But Weasel told me you got into a bit of trouble before. He found you sinking into the Naka River with stones tied to you. You swallowed a lot of water and stopped breathing so he had to perform CPR. We've already found the perpetrators and decided they would be perfect for Ibiki's apprentice to practice on. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, really. But CPR?" The girl tilted her head to the side, "What's that?

"It stands for Cardiopulmonary resuscitation." She knew that word wouldn't stay in her head for long, "Don't you remember studying it in the academy?" Naru shook her head, she was most likely asleep that day.

"Nope."

"Basically it's used to save drowning people by forcing air into their lungs and pushing down on their chest to get there heart beating." He explained.

"Oh! Mouth-to-mouth." She remembered. "Wait…mouth-to-mouth…?" He nodded and she felt the heat rise to her cheeks. _I feel like a total girl,_ she thought as the meaning came to mind,_ I hope I get over this soon._

"Are you ok?" The Hokage asked seeing the girl's face redden. He thought it could've been a fever but soon began chuckling at the real reason. "I think Fugaku should be proud of having such a strong and handsome ninja as his son." He commented slyly.

"Jiji, stop it." Naru whined, "It's embarrassing."

"Ah, my little Naru's growing up." He said wistfully. It was a very familial moment shared between them that brought out a peaceful atmosphere, yet that in itself gave her time to think as she dragged her thoughts to a more imperative topic.

"Ne," She began slowly, "You promised never to lie to me right Jiji."

"Of course," He replied, taking note of her change in demeanour, "Is there something you want to ask?"

"Do I… do I have the Kyuubi no Kitsune sealed into me." She looked up to see shock all over his face. She was never one for hedging but maybe she needed more tact when discussing matters like this.

"How-" He sighed, suddenly appearing much older, "Yes."

"So it's true." She murmured under her breath. Though, it was good that he was keeping to his word.

"May I ask how you found out?" He asked seriously, wondering if he would have to order an execution anytime soon.

"I met him." Naru replied.

"You met him?" Sarutobi repeated. He had full trust in the previous Hokage's sealing abilities but if by a small chance the Kyuubi got out there would be hell to pay. "How?"

"Well, when I was…dying I entered…my mind? And he was just sitting there, in a big cage." She explained rather badly.

"Did he say anything?" Sarutobi asked slightly worried. Maybe he should get Inoichi to check the girl.

"He insulted me." She began, "And then I figured out that the Yondaime sealed him into me but, I don't know why? Jiji, why did he have to choose me?" Her tone became pleading and she pinned her surrogate grandfather with a hurt filled stare, "Why didn't you tell me I had the Kyuubi?"

"You were too young, and you still are." He replied with a sigh, "I didn't want you to know until you were sixteen or at least a chuunin."

"That's a long time." She noted, more than twice her current age.

"With knowledge comes responsibility." He quoted, "I wanted you to be able to handle it but you're doing quite well at the moment."

"He hasn't done anything terribly bad to me so far," Naru stated, "He just seems grumpy all the time but I guess I would be too if I was caged up and sealed away… I think compared to Kyuubi who I know is evil and the people that threw me into the river, who could have been anyone on the street, I'm more afraid of them." The Hokage stayed silent, he understood where she was getting at but the knowledge did nothing to reassure him. "So why did the Yondaime choose me?" She reiterated.

"I-...I can't tell you, not yet." Sarutobi answered, "I made a promise that I would wait until you reach chuunin level."

"A promise?" She understood it was bad to break them so she wouldn't pressure him too hard, "To who?"

"Your parents." He replied.

"My parents?" The topic was a new area for her. "Did you know them Jiji?"

"Of course," He said with a smile, "I know every ninja inside this village. But-"

"I can't know who they are?" She guessed. He nodded with a minute smile.

"I promise, when you are older." He assured, "But, if you happen to figure out who your parents are or why the Yondaime chose you beforehand…well, then I wouldn't exactly be breaking my promise. The hints are all there for you. You're a smart girl Naru-chan, if you want to know you'll be able to find your answer." She remained slightly unconvinced but realized in the end it was all a matter of time.

"And if I can't figure it by the time I'm chuunin you'll tell me anyway?" He nodded. "Alright, I guess I'll have to do my best then." She gave him a soft smile, "I think I'll head off to the library."

"I'll have Tenzo escort you." As he spoke a lone Anbu appeared beside her.

"Thanks." She gave Sarutobi a small wave before dashing out of the door, Anbu in tow.

"Inu," Sarutobi called as he addressed the second hidden Anbu.

"Hokage-sama." The grey haired Anbu answered

"I heard that you'll be resigning from Anbu in the next few days," The Hokage leant back in his chair, lighting his pipe, "If that's case I have the perfect mission for you."

* * *

**A/N **It's different... but I like it better and I hope you, as the readers, do as well.

** s/9225520/1/Tender-Sea-Revamped**


	2. Terms and Conditions

**A/N **Welcome back.

We're onto part 2 of the Prologue.

I haven't really got much to say so I guess you can just get on with reading...

I hope you enjoy.

* * *

**~Prologue – TERMS AND CONDITIONS**

**2 years after – Konohagakure in the dead of night …Naruto aged 9**

- - - - - _Mindscape_ - - - - -

"I'm pretty sure I'm not dying…so why the hell am I back here?" Naru asked, looking around the sewer-like area. It was exactly as she remembered except for an odd noise coming from the direction where the Kyuubi lay. "What is that?" She walked a bit closer and her findings surprised her, "A child?!" She picked up her pace and settled into a light run, "How could a kid be here?"

"Mama?" A small girl with dark red hair and thin white yukata turned to look at her as she entered. Her eyes were puffy from crying and she was still sniffling miserably.

"Sorry, but I'm not your mum." Naru sent the child a warm smile, "But can you tell me how you got here? Actually maybe it would be better if you came over here." She made a coaxing motion, trying to get the kid out of harm's way, more specifically on to her side of the bars.

"No! Mama said to wait here!" The girl was fairly determined despite the fact she had been crying so much.

"But you can't stay there, it's dangerous!" Naru exclaimed.

"Why?" Now she looked around the cage seemed empty to the blonde, but she guessed the fox could be lurking anywhere within its shadows.

"There's a monster in there." She answered, "Now come here."

"Monster!?" The child was paralyzed by the realization, "I don't want to get eaten!" She started bawling sending Naru into a flustered state.

"Shhh! Just wait a second and I'll get you out." Against her better judgement she ran up to the cage but a strange force seemed to prevent her from slipping in the wide gaps. "What the hell is this?!" She figured if the fox could swipe at her then obviously she would be able to enter his domain but apparently it was wrong.

"Iyah! I don't want to die!" The kid was doing a good job screaming her lungs out but Naru couldn't help but wonder where the fox demon was.

"Maybe…" She looked up at the seal tagged onto the centre most bar, "Is that stopping me?"

"MAMA!"

"Just give me a sec kid!" If it was the seal stopping her then there was no way to save the kid unless she took it off. Then again wouldn't that be freeing the fox? "Hey kid," She paused and stared straight at the crying figure, "How did you get in there?"

"I dunno…" She sniffled. The more Naru thought about it the stranger the situation seemed. After all, they were either in her stomach, or mind, or the seal, but whichever one it happened to be…wouldn't that be accessible to only the fox and herself? "Ah…**_you figured it out…"_** The child's voice changed to something more guttural as it stood to face the kunoichi. Red eyes clashing with blue.

"Kyuubi!" Naru growled, "That was low."

**_"If it means my freedom, I am not below using a child's body."_** He answered simply enough. **_"Maybe this would have been better?"_** The child's form shifted into that of a beautiful woman with a slender yet very feminine frame, the yukata now hanging loosely off her shoulders. Crimson hair lengthened, falling in soft waves and pooling on the ground, also framing a deceptively kind face. To the blonde, the bloody colour of the fox's eyes seemed wrong on the woman. "My dear, Naru-chan." Even his voice had become softer, more mellow and…loving.

"I admit you make a pretty convincing woman." Naru acknowledged, "But I'm not going to be letting you out anytime soon, sorry Kyuubi."

"Not even for me?" The woman continued, "Your Oka-san?"

"Oka-san? What are you talking about? You're definitely the fox, don't try to fool me." The blonde replied.

"…So that's it," The fox responded, picking up on the girl's thoughts, **_"You still do not know, do you? Who your parents are and what they look like."_**

"I don't," She admitted, "But I'll find out soon enough and until then, I can wait. By the way stop changing your voice, it's weird." The fox stayed silent, debating his next action. "Also," She began, "Do you know why I'm here? Am I dying again?"

**_"No, I brought you here this time."_** The fox confessed. He had watched her carefully for two years. It passed as quick as a blink of an eye for an immortal demon like him, but for humans there was an awful lot that could happen. He watched on grudgingly, searching for the moment she slipped but as she progressed so did his thoughts. When she had her first kill a few months back the fox had finally made his choice.

"Huh, why?" Naru thought he seemed strangely placated compare to the last two times and found it easier to uphold a civil conversation. "I'm telling you again that I definitely won't be touching that seal."

**_"That is…fine."_** He said reluctantly, **_"In fact, I would like to make a deal with you."_**

"A deal? No offence but why should I trust you?" She asked sceptically. The Kyuubi strode up to the bars in his female form.

**_"We foxes are cunning, intelligent and wise,"_** The red-haired woman answered, **_"You will never fool a fox, but they will seduce you, lure you and entrap you within their snare."_** The form shimmered and the girl was faced with a rather formidable man. The slender body filled out, becoming more defined and masculine, even growing a couple heads taller. The silky crimson hair became unruly, spiking out like a mane while the face became more chiselled losing the feminine softness. His complexion also darkened, contrasting to the woman's previous creaminess. The most startling feature though, was definitely the nine furry tails which swayed behind him and the furry new appendages a top his head. **_"But above all, we Kitsunes keep our words. Not that much different to your own nindo."_**

"My nindo? Of course you'd know." The girl muttered under her breath, even though it was heard clearly in the end, "But how can I trust those words?"

**_"Truthfully? You cannot." _**He stared her straight in the eyes, **_"But why not consider it?"_**

"Well, I guess it can't hurt if you're just talking," She shrugged and conceded, "Go ahead. What are you offering and what do you want from me?"

**_"I will offer you power,"_** He answered, **_"Enhanced senses, knowledge, any jutsu you wish for, limitless chakra reserves. Everything I have."_**

"And in return?" She wondered what he could want so badly from her.

**_"Blood, the blood of a disillusioned fool,"_** The man the fox masqueraded as let out a feral snarl, **_"The pathetic coward of a human who dared to control me with his cursed eyes."_**

"And you'll give me your… everything if I can kill one man?" Naru asked in disbelief, "You must really hate him."

**_"Hate? I loathe him."_** The fox clarified as if it wasn't already obvious, **_"I am offering you all I have because that is what it will take to defeat him. As much as I hate to admit it, he is powerful."_**

"Who do you want me to kill?" She wondered.

**_"A human far past his time. I ask the life of Madara, Uchiha Madara."_**

"Madara? Isn't he dead." She questioned. Naru remembered at least that much of Iruka's lessons.

**_"Far from it."_** The fox gave a growl of annoyance.

"That actually a pretty good deal," She confessed, "But how do you know I'll uphold my end of the deal?"

**_"I have observed you. As I said before, I understand your nindo, you would not betray or do perform any other corrupt act."_** She was slightly touched that he trusted her to that extent.

"And how am I supposed to find him. The Elemental nations are huge and he could be anywhere."

**_"He will come to you." _**The Kyuubi replied, **_"You, who is my jailor, holds an essential component for his eventual plan, that is myself. If he wants to obtain me he will have to kill you first."_**

"What!? Tell me that first next time!" She didn't want some homicidal maniac after her, "And what's his master plan anyway?"

**_"I think it was world domination,"_** He held his chin in a thoughtful and very human manner, **_"More specifically the enslavement of every living being in the world to his will."_**

"…I think you should have mentioned that earlier as well." The girl mumbled. "Stupid zombies and their stupid, evil ambitions."

**_"But the most troublesome thing is the fact that he can accomplish it,"_** The man continued,**_ "When it comes to him it is not an empty dream but a possible reality. Therefore you should kill him, for both of our sakes."_**

"I guess I can't argue with that." Naru acknowledged.

**_"And I will do everything in my power to help you."_** He promised, **_"Though if you do find yourself on the losing side, I recommend killing yourself before he can get to you."_**

"What?! Why?" She never liked to entertain the thought of suicide.

**_"Because then you are guaranteed a comparatively painless death, and the fool loses an essential element. If you die, I will die as well." _**He explained, **_"Of course after a while I would be reborn into the world but hopefully by then the fool's time would be over."_**

"Well, if he's going to come after me anyway, and I'll have to stop his plan of world domination, I guess it wouldn't be too bad to make a deal with you." She surmised.

**_"Good choice…kit."_**

* * *

**3 years after – Team selection day…Naruto aged 12**

"Mornin' Inu-sensei." The blonde shifted out of her meditative state, opening her eyes just in time to see a lazy silver haired jounin jumped down from the trees.

"Yo." He greeted with a wave before pulling out an orange covered book, "I told you countless times already to call me Kakashi-sensei, Naru-chan."

"And I told you countless times to stop reading that trash." The girl retorted, pointing a kunai at the novel.

"…Well then, it's team selection day." Her sensei announced, moving onto another topic.

"I know, I heard it from Jiji yesterday." Naru stood and dusted her clothes off. All she had on was a pair of black shorts, an orange tank, and a pair of plated, fingerless gloves she nearly never took off, the rest of her clothes having been put to the side while she warmed up. Naru walked up to the small pile of her belongings and picked up her weapon pouch, strapping it onto her thigh, before slipping on a black sleeveless hoodie. "What time do we need to get there?" She asked, tying her headband around her forehead.

"Hmm," He bent down and picked up an orange tanto wrapped with a chain, handing it to the girl who threaded it through her belt, "We have about two hours till the other jounins begin to arrive. So that means roughly five hours." He replied accounting for his lateness.

"And I absolutely have to go this time?" Naru questioned. She had long gotten over the excitement of possibly having teammates when she had seen how weak some of them were and how high Kakashi had raised his standards. But they continued to test them out, as per Sarutobi's conditions. "Can't I go train with Gai-san and his team today or something?" Kakashi's visible eye twitched at the mention of his 'youthful' rival.

"No, not this time," He sighed, "It looks like you'll actually be getting team mates."

"Are they that good?" Naru asked raising a brow in interest.

"Well, there's a lot of potential." He began, pulling out an info sheet, "Haruno Sakura, excellent chakra control but small reserves. Scored a full marks on the written exam, and passed as an average on the practical. Her Ninjutsu was good, but her taijutsu was below standard and her weapon accuracy isn't anything special either. Seems to have a slight obsession with your next teammate" Kakashi listed out the information, "Sasuke Uchiha,"

"Uchiha…" Naru echoed.

"The 'last' Uchiha and rookie of the year," Kakashi used the term last rather loosely, "He did slightly above average on the written exam and high to near perfect on the practical, high average on taijutsu and weapon accuracy and perfect on the basic academy jutsu. Slightly arrogant personality and bent on revenge and the restoration of his clan." Naru clenched her fist, bringing her attention down to her hands. The sight of the gloves which protected her hands and most part of her arms calmed her down significantly.

"I wonder where he got them." Kakashi thought aloud, glancing at the gloves, "It's amazing those have lasted a full year in our trade. Must have been expensive, though he probably had a lot of money to spare."

"He told me he picked it up from the Land of Iron." Kakashi let out a whistle of appreciation.

"And the weasel lives up to his name, sneaking into a no-ninja territory." They both spent a moment to reminisce in the memory of their comrade.

"Well if that's all we have for today I think I'll stop by the ramen stand and then head to the Academy." She pulled out a fat, frog shaped wallet, "Gama-chan is looking particularly happy these past few days."

* * *

"Iruka-sensei!" Naru called, running up to her old teacher with a rather large metal box. He sighed at the sight of it but it was really just another part of the prodigal girl.

"Ah, Naru-chan, I was expecting you." The friendly brunet said with a smile. "I have a good feeling this time around, plus they'll be the same age as you."

"Kakashi said that the next two are probably going to stay." She passed on, "You both have high hopes."

"I believe in all my students." Iruka answered thoughtfully. She smiled fondly up at the man in response. "Right, this is the room." He stated, pointing at the classroom one down from last year's. "You know the drill-"

"Stay quiet and don't interrupt." Naru finished dutifully. He shot her and the box a final look before opening the door, making way for the girl to enter first. "Thanks." She walked into the lively room, filled with upcoming ninja and possible future comrades, taking the time to look around and observe.

"Alright, quiet down." Iruka called over the noise. He was proud that the class seemed to listen quicker than usual, probably eager to hear of the team placements.

"Sensei! Who's that?" An Inuzuka asked loudly. He had a rather cute white pup dozing quietly on his head.

"Class, this is Uzumaki Naruto." Iruka introduced, "She's a fellow shinobi who will be here to observe."

"Nice to meet you." Naru greeted with a wave, smiling up at a particular Hyuga. She went over to sit by the side of the room while Iruka got down to business.

"Now then first of all I'd like to congratulate you all for passing the graduation exam. I'm proud of you all and every one of you preformed wonderfully," The teachers earnest words elicited small blushes and embarrassed smiles on his adorable students. There was a soft clatter to the side where Naru was opening the metal box and soon the aroma of food began to waft into the room.

"Uh, sensei…"

"Anyway," Iruka continued, "Today I'll be placing you into team of three-" He was interrupted by a noisy slurp but ignored it to the amazement of his students, "And you'll each be assigned a jounin as your teacher. It's as simple as that." A student diligently raised his hand, "What is it Chouji-kun?"

"Ah, are we allowed to eat noodles inside the classroom?" He wondered. Another loud slurp echoed throughout the room before Iruka could answer.

"Yes…But I'd ask that you don't distract the students!" He put on a demon face as he shouted, hitting the blonde observer with some rolled up paper.

"Ouch." She winced and rubbed the back of her head. "Iruka-sensei, you must be angry due to lack of ramen, here." She swiftly swirled a bundle of still hot noodles around her chopsticks before shoving then in the brunet's mouth in one smooth motion.

"Mmf?" He gave her an annoyed look but swallowed the delicious mouthful, "Please refrain from doing that next time." He said in a tone that showed he was all too used to the girl's quirks. "Back to the team placements, Team 1 will be…" Iruka's monotonous droning somehow made Naru insignificant to the students as they all listened carefully, "…Team 7 will be Sakura and Sasuke," The pink haired girl shot her rival a victorious look before sending shy glances at her new teammate who didn't look at all pleased, "Your jounin leader will he Hatake Kakashi and his apprentice will fill in the third spot in your team. Team 8 will be Hinata, Kiba and Shino with Kurenai Yuuhi as leader. Team 9 will be Shikamaru, Ino and Chouji and you'll be led by Asuma Sarutobi…" Iruka finished off his announcement and looked up from the sheet he was reading off. "Are there any questions?" Sakura raised her hand. "Yes, Sakura-chan?"

"Who is our team's third member?" She asked. Naru shot a look to Iruka that went unnoticed by most people except the more observant individuals, specifically a certain Nara.

"Ah, you'll meet her later." Iruka answered unsure. The last Uchiha took particular note of this, finding it strange for a team to have two girls.

"Is she strong?" Sasuke said speaking up for the first time since they had entered the classroom.

"Of course." Iruka replied rather proudly. "If that's everything, you can all go out for lunch but be back here at 1:00 to meet your jounins." Iruka left the room to continue his daily jobs leaving Naru alone with his student. At the moment she was in an intense staring contest with the Nara as he tried to decipher her. It was definitely surprising for the class to watch as the timid and shy Hyuga was first to start a conversation with the newcomer.

"Um, Naru-chan," She asked quietly, too soft for an eavesdroppers to hear, "What brings you here today?"

"Oh, Hinata-chan!" Naru greeted with a smile, "This is a normal thing for me. For the past four years I've always come to the academy during team selections. Just scouting out my fellow comrades I guess."

"For four years? Why?" The Hyuga asked surprised.

"Teammate searching. By the way you must be hungry," She rummaged around her pockets an unsealed an elegant looking bento, "Neji told me you forgot your lunch this morning so he asked me to pass this to you."

"Neji-niisan? Thank you." Hinata graciously accepted. She opened the box revealing an artfully made selection of food.

"You know, I bet Neji was the one to make that," Naru said with a cheeky smile, "On the same note have you seen him in an apron before, he'd make a good housewife." The blonde handed Hinata a photograph of a very feminine looking male in what was clearly a woman's apron.

"Neji-niisan!" Hinata giggled softly but mentally scolded herself for agreeing with her friends words.

"Oi, Hinata!" The Inuzuka from before called, "Is she your friend? Introduce us." He walked over to join them, followed by his future teammate.

"Of course." Hinata replied, "Kiba-kun, Shino-kun this is Uzumaki Naruto, Naru-chan, this is Inuzuka Kiba, his partner Akamaru and Aburame Shino."

"Nice to meet you two." Naru greeted, "I trust you'll make sure Hinata stays safe?"

"You bet!" Kiba shouted eagerly, "We're a team now after all." Akamaru barked in agreement and Shino gave a small nod.

"Well, I think you should all have lunch together, team bonding and what not." Naru called with a smile.

"What about you?" Hinata asked.

"My ramen is calling and I'd like to pay it my full attention." The blonde answered with a serious look. She replaced her now empty bowl with a fresh one from the metal box.

"Ah." Hinata took her word for it as soon as the blonde's eyes seemed to glaze over with adoration. She and her teammates moved to sit together near the back, chatting quite happily.

"Well, I guess there won't be any major problems with Team 8." She mumbled to herself, taking a large bite of the noodles. "Damn, I waited too long and they're going soggy." She quickened her pace, slurping down the second bowl within the minute.

"Geez, she could probably give even you a run for you money Chouji," She heard a girl comment. Naru looked up to see the trademark platinum blonde of Ino Yamanaka. She had visited the flower shop once or twice and caught sight of the busy girl but never interacted with her.

"Hey you," She turned her head to see Sasuke staring at her with Sakura standing faithfully behind him. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"Didn't you hear Iruka-sensei before?" Naru questioned, putting down her bowl, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, today's observer. I guess you could say I'm taking over for Mizuki."

"Oh right!" Sakura realized, "Where is Mizuki-sensei?"

"I think at the moment he would be in the T.I. headquarters." She answered.

"Huh, why?" Ino asked. She was familiar with the place thanks to her dad and it was definitely not a place shinobi ever wanted to go. "Is he thinking of quitting and changing squads?"

"Nope," Naru gave a slightly feral grin, "He's probably being tortured for information right now."

"What?!" Sakura exclaimed louder than anyone else. "Why!?"

"Oi, calm down and stop shouting in my ear." Naru said with a wince, "It's simple really, yesterday he was found as a traitor when he attempted to steal the village's forbidden scroll." Most of the class was shocked by the revelation and she hoped Iruka wouldn't mind their new-found knowledge.

"How do you know all of this?" Shikamaru questioned, turning everyone's attention back to the girl.

"Who do you think apprehended him?" She asked back. "Anyway, I'd get back to your seats, lunch is just about over." They did as she advised, mostly to contemplate the information. The students waited patiently and one by one their jounin leaders came to pick them up until there were only two left.

"So, Naruto," Sakura began, "Did you graduate yesterday as well?"

"No, I became a ninja a few years back." She answered.

"When?" Sasuke asked. He didn't like the fact their sensei was late but joining the conversation would at least keep him entertained.

"About, five years ago." Naru pulled out the third and final bowl of ramen.

"Five years ago?" Sakura did the math in her head. The girl looked about her age so… "When you were seven?"

"Yep."

"What rank are you then?" The Uchiha asked, not liking the idea that he was in the presence of some sort of prodigy.

"Genin." The blonde answered simply.

"You stayed a genin for five years?" He questioned, maybe she wasn't such a genius then.

"It's not like it was by choice," She snapped, "I can't even take the chuunin exams since they require a team and field promotions are rare."

"You don't have a team?" Sakura repeated in disbelief, "Why?"

"Because my sensei set's his standards to high. Anyway, I'd sit tight if I were you. Kakashi probably won't come for a couple more hours." She packed up her lunch and walked towards the door, "I have prior engagements so I'll see you later." Even before she had stepped through the door she was gone in a swirl of leaves.

* * *

"So? What do you think?" Kakashi asked as his apprentice popped up beside him.

"The whole class was filled with heirs. And they all seemed competent enough for freshly minted graduates." She reported.

"And of your new teammates?" He probed.

"I don't like them," Naru said immediately, "But I don't particularly dislike them either."

"But you can see the potential can't you?" She nodded.

"Yeah, but they need work," She grimaced, pretending not to care as her teacher pulled out his porn, "A lot of work."

"And that's why they'll be on this team." He said with his patented eye-smile, "By the way I hope you understand if they pass we'll both be going back to D-ranks." Naru groaned in response, hitting her forehead on the nearby railing.

* * *

**A/N **And that's the end of this chapter.

The deal is sealed. And it's the beginning of a beautiful, symbiotic relationship between a demon fox and a sunny blonde.

If you were still wondering the Hokage's mission for Inu was Naru's apprenticeship with Kakashi, granted that each year they search for members to fit their eventual team.

Uh, people may seem ooc but it's all within reason. i.e Hinata's missing stutter is due to the early befriending of Naru and the lack of Neji's anger (also due to Naru).

...

Well that's all I have to say...

So thanks for reading.


	3. Loss of a Brother

**A/N **Right! just one more chapter after this and that's the prologue!

We're jumping ahead a lot, just enough to show the turning points/significant moments in her life.

I really haven't got much to say so I'll just let you read on.

* * *

**~Prologue – LOSS OF A BROTHER**

**4 years later – Valley of the End… Naru aged 16**

"Sasuke…" Naru hissed in disgust standing over his kneeling form, "Or would it be more fitting to call you Orochimaru now?" She looked over the pitiful state of a possessed Sasuke. Since he deserted them they were no longer comrades, from the time he almost killed Sakura they were no longer teammates, and after clashing with him so many times Naru wondered if they were still brothers. It was unlikely, as Sai would state the bonds had been shattered, torn apart by Sasuke himself. She'd like to hold the belief that it was due the curse mark that Sasuke had lost the rational part of his mind, but it was only her own desperation. Fuelled by vengeance and power hungry, Sasuke turned traitor. "It's over." The blonde stated with a sense of finality.

"Hn." Sasuke grunted feeling the pain of all his wounds. His cursed form had receded due to chakra depletion and his body was littered with deep cuts and bruises, not to mention a couple of broken ribs and limbs. The battle had been intense and he wasn't the only one that suffered, Naru looked far worse and it was amazing she was the one standing. The destruction of most of her clothes, leaving her barely decent, showed numerous amounts of harsh burns and cuts. Her usually bright, blonde hair was dyed red with both of their blood and she had an obvious limp. Though by far her worst wound was the gaping hole she had received through her heart, which thanks to the Kyuubi, was slowly closing up. "You sure are a persistent pest aren't you?" The possessed Sasuke gritted out, glaring at her with his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.

"I could say the same to you." Naru spat back, putting as much acid into her voice as possible, "I've chased after Sasuke for roughly four years and when I finally catch him I find trash like you in his place."

"Watch it!" Orochimaru sneered, hoping to drag out the conversation long enough for him to regain some chakra, "I only gained full possession of this body about a couple months back when Sasuke began questioning his decision."

"What are you talking about," Naru scoffed, "That teme chose to go with you willingly." Despite the pain to his vessel, Orochimaru cackled maliciously.

"That may be so," He admitted, "But it seems like the nonsense you would spout at him every time you confronted each other were starting to get to him. After my dear boy killed Itachi and completed his revenge, he was prepared to return to the village and atone for his sins."

"What?" the blonde said shocked. _Sasuke would have returned?_ The thought caused the demon fox inside her to growl.

**_What are you doing just standing there listening to the snake!_** He shouted in her mind. **_Finish him off and be done with it._** Naru nodded and pulled out a kunai, too weak to perform any jutsu. It was too late though, Orochimaru had used her naivety to stall for enough time, and was now going through numerous hand seals. Naru growled at her own foolishness and lunged forward only to find her feet anchored to the ground by snakes.

"Kinjutsu – Shitai Kyushu-ho!" Orochimaru reached out his hand towards Naru's abdomen as she struggled but he felt his vessel freeze for a split second. She noticed this and watched as slowly, the hand was drawn back just before touching her. "Dammit!" Orochimaru shouted, "Why can't I control my body?!" Faster than her eyes could follow he began performing a multitude of hand signs, cursing loudly all the while.

"Your body?" The same mouth uttered in an entirely different tone.

"Sasuke-teme?" Naru questioned unsurely. The possessed body gave her one of the famous Uchiha smirks.

"How is it going dobe?" Sasuke replied, "You miss me?"

"You shouldn't be alive!" Orochimaru exclaimed from the same body. It was confusing to watch but by listening to the tones of the voices, Naru knew who was who.

"You didn't think I was going down that easily did you?" Sasuke mocked. During the whole time his hands continued to move, speeding up slightly.

"What are you doing?" the ex-Sannin screeched, "Give me back my body!" Sasuke scoffed in response.

"I hardly think it's your body you thief!" Sasuke replied.

"Does this mean you've got your body back?" Naru asked excitedly only for her hope to diminish as Sasuke shook his head.

"Sorry Naru but –" He was interrupted.

"Tell me what technique you're preforming!" Orochimaru demanded, "I don't recognize the hand seals."

"I bet it's going to be a super powerful jutsu that'll get rid of Orochi-teme, right?" Naru offered. Sasuke shook his head again.

"You should know by now, even if you're a dobe," Sasuke explained, "I'm stuck with the slimy bastard and there is no way to get rid of him." Orochimaru tried to cut him off but was pushed back as Sasuke finished the technique.

"Sorry dobe, but this'll hurt." The Uchiha came towards her and covered her eyes with his left hand while the right finished the last few seals, "Kinjutsu – Ketsueki Iten!"

"What–" Naru managed to say, feeling a warm liquid run over her eyes, before she the pain Sasuke mentioned came. It started as a dull ache in her eyes which only intensified as it spread throughout her whole body. Held in place by the snakes, she bit back a scream, not wanting to show any weakness.

"You're holding up fairly well," Sasuke stated, his breathing laboured. As his hands were removed, Naru was frightened, finding that she couldn't see anything except an expanse of darkness.

"Sasuke, what did you do?" Naru gasped, feeling tears run down her cheek from the pain. She didn't have to wait for his answer as Orochimaru responded for her.

"My eyes!" He cried angrily, "What have you done to my Sharingan!"

"I gave it away." Sasuke told them both, "Naru, I can't hold him back much longer, and you're handicapped with the loss of your sight at the moment." He used her name to convey the seriousness of the situation, "Use this chance to kill me."

"I can't!" Naru answered quietly, "I was prepared to do it before but now you're here I want to save you!"

"You can't!" Sasuke told her the blunt reality, grabbing her hand which clutched a kunai.

"Do it!" He guided her to his throat and Naru gave a sob, "Do it." He repeated sadly.

"Sasuke…" Naru murmured.

**_Just do it kit,_** Kyuubi advised,**_ It's his last wish that to die by your hands rather than be supressed by the snake._** Naru took a deep breath and steeled herself, pushing back her personal emotions and adapting her mindset to that of a veteran ninja.

"Farewell, my brother, may I see you in hell." She grinned foxily at him before swiping her weapon along his throat. Despite her sudden blindness she felt the spray of warm blood and the smirk of satisfaction directed at her.

* * *

- - - - - _Mindscape_ - - - - -

**_"Kit,"_** Naru sat in her mindscape as she listened to the fox's comforting words,**_ "It's been two days already. How long do you plan to cry for?"_**

"But, Sasuke…" the girl looked down at her hands which were covered in blood, "I killed him. I killed my brother!" She sobbed and looked around her desolate mind. The walls of the sewer were dyed crimson as she herself knelt in a pool of black liquid.

**_"I know, but you have to move on. It's in a ninja's line of work and he was prepared for the consequences of his actions."_** Naru stayed silent while the Kyuubi snuck a tail out of his cage. The furred appendage gently wrapped around the frail looking girl before dissipating in a red mist.**_ "You don't need to hurry,"_** he began, "**_But you have your important people in the real world worrying about you. At least give them a reason to be relieved."_** Naru nodded and stood mechanically,

"You right," She wiped her tears away, "I've still got important things to do and there are enemies after me."

**_"Train,"_** the demon suggested, **_"It'll keep your mind off things and help prepare you for future battles."_**

"Thank you." Naru said sincerely, bowing deeply to the fox, "You know, you're not such a bad guy, Kyuubi."

**_"Kurama,"_** he answered, **_"I'll give you the privilege of using my name." _**Naru laughed lightly at his haughty tone.

"Really, you help me more than you know, Kurama." She gave the beast a small wave before returning to the real world.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

"Hokage-sama, she's awake!" called a young woman's voice. Naru felt strange, she was definitely in a hospital bed with a couple of tubes stuck in her arms but her vision was obscured and all she could see was darkness. She reached out and felt bandages wrapped around her eyes.

"Gaki!" Tsunade shouted, "You gave us quite a scare. How are you feeling?"

"Strange." Naru answered, "What's happened recently?"

"Kakashi found you collapsed at The Valley of the End two days ago with Sasuke dead next to you." The Godaime said grimly, "He buried Sasuke where he died and brought you back to Konoha for healing. As soon as your friends found out they came charging in here like a stampede of wild bulls." Naru giggled softly, she could definitely imagine that, "Of course we can't have that behaviour in a hospital so they were chased out until they could compose themselves."

"Um, Baa-chan," Naru asked quietly slightly worried about her vision, "Why are my eyes wrapped up?"

"We found something strange in them and when exposed to light the muscles around your pupil moved incessantly, causing it to continuously dilate and contract. To prevent this we decided to cover your eyes and let them rest in darkness for a while before exposing them to light again."

"Oh, ok." Naru was confused but trusted in Tsunade's medical knowledge, "I guess I'll just have to make do for now."

"Do you know what could have caused this?" the older blonde asked, "Anything that may have happened during the fight?"

"Actually-" Naru was cut off as the door was slammed open and a group of people stumbled in.

"Naru!" they shouted loudly.

"Shut up!" the Hokage responded hitting each of the teens harshly on the head. "We'll talk about this later," She said to her patient, "For now you should tend to your friends while I get a drink."

"Hai, Baa-chan!" Naru made a mock salute and the older woman left grumbling about rude brats. After she was gone the room exploded with questions, confusing the poor patient who was trying to make sense of it all.

"Maa-maa, guys," her sensei drawled in his lazy tone, "One at a time you're confusing her."

"Thanks." Naru said gratefully, recovering from her dizziness.

"How are you, Naru?" Asked a shy heiress.

"I'm doing fine Hinata." The blonde answered, "Just give me a couple of hours and I'll be back on my feet!"

"Naru-baka!" Sakura hit her teammate sharply on the head, "You need to rest." The pink hair girl was relieved to have her friend back, even if their other teammate was now deceased.

"Of course." Naru replied with a cheeky grin.

"What happened to your eyes?" A certain Nara asked.

"I actually have no idea." She told to group.

"Really," Kiba sounded his disbelief, "But you would've known if you had injured them right?"

"Probably." She shrugged, "But there's no use worrying about them now. I'll just ask Baa-chan for the details later." Everyone accepted the answer and moved onto idle chatter. Ino was sitting on her bed chatting with Sakura as she brushed Naru's hair. Shikamaru had somehow found a shogi board and was playing against Shino, who was apparently, a tough opponent. Kiba, who had snuck Akamaru into the hospital, was talking to Choji about where they should be celebrating her recovery. Naru herself was having an animated conversation with Sai and Hinata, while both Kakashi and Yamato stood by the side to advise everyone.

"I think I've worked out a new form for Rasengan-" she stop abruptly as she felt thundering footsteps hurrying towards them.

"Naru-chan!" Her very youthful friend charged through the door followed by Neji, Tenten and Gai.

"Sorry for the noise!" Tenten apologised being just as loud.

"Be quiet!" Neji scolded them both, "We are at a hospital not a farmhouse!"

"Aren't my team brimming with youthfulness and compassion!" Gai said to Kakashi.

"Hm?" the Cyclops replied even though everyone knew he had heard clearly, "Did you say something?" Gai held his chest dramatically,

"My hip rival, your words wound me."

"Ahaha…" Naru trailed off. She silently thanked Iruka for the sensor lessons she had years ago allowing her to sense Lee and prepare for the oncoming barrage of his youth. Speaking of him, the scarred academy teacher also came through the door followed by a dango-offering Anko. Naru hadn't failed to notice how close the two were recently. It was nice to see the modest teacher with someone so… outgoing…

"Naru, are you ok?!" Iruka was flustered and worried trying to calm himself but failing.

"Brat, here's a gift." The snake mistress shoved the food onto her lap and slouched back into a chair. Next Asuma and Kurenai sauntered in with some get well flowers.

"Thank you." Naru said placing them by her bedside. **_It's nice to know how many people care for you,_** Kurama noted. Surprisingly, Naru also noticed three other chakra signals by the door as well as a tiny bit of red hair poking out behind it. "Gaara, you can come out from hiding behind there…I can sense your chakra and you hair's poking out." The room quietened as the Godaime Kazekage popped out from behind the door, his cheeks coloured a healthy dose of red.

"I was not hiding Uzumaki." He denied pouting slightly. His two siblings were with him as well. Temari sneaking glances at the lazy strategist while Kankuro began a hearty conversation with Kiba. "Uzumaki," The other jinchuriki seemed slightly confused, "How did you see my hair if your eyes are bandaged?" The conversations suddenly quietened as everybody thought hard.

"That's right." Iruka stated, "You're able to sense people but you shouldn't have known his hair was poking out." Gaara blushed again, something extremely clear to Naru.

"I-I don't know," She replied startled, "I only just noticed but I can actually see all of you, though everything's grainy because of the bandage I guess?" Kakashi noticed her uneasiness and quickly sent for Shizune who arrived a moment later with the Hokage and Toad Sannin.

"I came as fast as I could and brought Tsunade-sama and Jiraiya-sama!" She stated regaining her breath, "What's wrong? Is she having seizures again?"

"I was having seizures before?" Naru asked. Jiraiya nodded seriously checking over his student's current health.

"Actually you seemed fine when you woke so it slipped my mind," Tsunade admitted, "When you were first brought here you were having some serious fits and kept screaming about your body burning."

"Aah." The young blonde couldn't remember any of that but she had escaped to her mindscape for a while. It must have been subconscious.

"So what's the problem?" Tsunade continued taking a large drink from the sake bottle she was holding.

"Um, I can see?" Naru said unsurely.

"What do you mean?" The medic asked.

"Well, I seem to be able to see again," Naru scratched the back of her head, "And see through the bandages…"

"Are you sure?" Jiraiya questioned seriously, "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"You're not holding any up you damn pervert." The patient replied slightly irritated.

"That's strange," Shizune mumbled.

"Indeed, neither of your parents held this ability so we can't assume you might have 'unlocked' it in battle or something." The slug Sannin said carelessly.

"Parents?" All of her friends repeated the words confused, including the jounins except for Kakashi who had figured it out long ago.

"Oh right!" Tsunade hit her palm with her fist, "I was going to announce it after Naru was released but seeing as you're some of her closest friends it wouldn't hurt to tell. Her mother is Uzumaki Kushina the Red-hot Habanero and former resident of Uzushiogakure and jinchuriki of the nine-tailed fox." Naru laughed at the nickname and at the expectant faces of those in the room. "And her father was Konoha's Yellow Flash and fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze." There was silence as the facts were absorbed.

"Eeeeh?!" Everyone looked towards Naru for some sort of amazing reaction from her. She just sat there and stared back from behind her bandaged.

"I've known since I was 9."

"EEEEEHHHH?!" There was more shock as even Kakashi, Jiraiya and Tsunade where included.

"Kurama told me."

**_Fool,_** the fox said**_, they don't know my name._**

"Who's Kurama?" Kakashi asked.

"The Kyuubi…" Naru responded meekly. Tsunade held her forehead feeling a migraine coming on.

"Let's handle this one shock at a time. Now, putting aside the fact Naru seem quite friendly towards the nine-tailed havoc raising demon,"

**_Thanks for the compliment,_** Kurama said happily,

"And who her parents are, let's see why she is able to see through bandages." Tsunade walked over to her bedridden goddaughter and began unravelling the bandages. Naru shut her eyes and waited patiently for them to be removed. "Ok." Tsunade collected the last bit, "Please open your eyes Naru." The girl did as told and by the gasps she received it looked like there was another shock.

"What is it now?" She asked.

"Sharingan!" Hinata exclaimed pointing at her eyes.

"What are you on about?" Naru scratched the back of her head, "I don't have the Sharingan. In fact I'm pretty sure my eyes are blue." She found her headband sitting on the table beside her and used its reflective surface as a mirror. A pair of familiar red and black eyes stared back at her intensely.

"Sasuke-teme!" She growled out in understanding. It was his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. The three pointed, red intersecting ellipses with Itachi's own black, three-pronged pinwheel in the centre finished with a black background.

"Sasuke?" Sakura asked nervously, "What did he do?"

"He performed a forbidden technique." Naru said bitterly, "It was near the end of my duel with Orochimaru who had possessed his body. I was foolish and fell into one of his traps just as I was going in for the kill. Instead he was about to end me with his Kinjutsu – Shitai kyushu-ho,"

"Corpse absorption technique," Tsunade said softly, "It allows the user to absorb the corpse of his foe and all of its abilities, though if they're still alive it only partially works leaving the opponent in a comatose state,"

"Well just as he was about to hit me with it he suddenly pulled back his hand due to Sasuke's conscience returning. Sasuke then managed to hold the snake-teme back long enough to perform another forbidden technique. He called it Kinjutsu – Ketsueki Iten."

"Blood transfer jutsu?" Shikamaru echoed. Jiraiya looked thoughtful.

"Well if he and Orochimaru shared that body he would have had access to Orochimaru's knowledge and may have been able to create some sort of technique for transferring bloodlines." Jiraiya explained.

"Sasuke was struggling to hold back Orochi-teme," Naru said quietly, "It must have been a failsafe plan to stop him from having the Sharingan and most likely his last resort."

"But Sasuke defected to Orochimaru didn't he?" Kiba asked, "Why would he plan for such a thing?"

"Sasuke defected for the sole purpose of revenge," Kakashi explained, "Orochimaru was the only one at the time who offered him enough power for it so he defected from Konoha. It does not necessarily mean that he liked his new master."

"He didn't," Naru answered, "After he accomplished his revenge he was prepared to come back to Konoha and atone for his sins, accept any punishment he would receive for his selfishness." Eyebrows shot up in disbelief and shock, "But the slimy teme noticed this and forcefully took over Sasuke's body." Her voice shook as tears of blood began to roll down her cheeks, "Sasuke-teme only had about 60% of his body under control, which was going down fast. So after he used the technique he asked me to kill him before that snake came back." All her emotion seemed to be flooding back again. "I killed him!" Even Sakura didn't seem as shook up as Naru did. "I can't do it…" Naru whispered, "I-I need some air… I need to train."

"No way!" Tsunade shouted but it was too late, Naru was gone leaving scattered leaves in her place. "Quick, everyone start searching for her! She is in no conditional to even be walking right now. That damn gaki!"

"Hai!" Everyone left the room in search of the missing blonde while Tsunade pulled out another bottle of sake.

"I really need a break." She returned to her office in hopes of using Sarutobi's crystal ball to spot her goddaughter. Meanwhile said girl had disappeared into the forest right behind the Hokage monument.

"Arrgh!" Naru clutched her head as she knelt on the floor, the hospital gown hanging off her fragile form. Her eyes had been activated the entire time and using up her already diminished chakra levels. **_Just stop the flow towards your eyes._** Kurama said helpfully. Naru did just that and her vision returned to its normal state. Nothing seemed crystal clear anymore and she didn't find herself scrutinizing random objects to analyse them. She recovered from her small fit of hysteria and stood tall, shifting into her taijutsu stance before moving through a beginner's kata. _Left, left, right, step in, kick, pivot, elbow. _She repeated the sequence in her head, her moves slowly becoming more and more intense. _Knee, crouch, sweep, grab, throw, _her movements flowed from her tired limbs, _fist, elbow, pivot, side, punch, left, back, right, thrust, pun-_ She stopped as her fist was caught. Her eyes trailed up from the gloved hand covering her much smaller one, to the flak jacket belonging to a jounin, to the ever present black mask, and up to his sole visible eye which was staring at her gently.

"Kakashi-sensei," Naru said brokenly, "Why did you stop me?"

"You can't do this to yourself Naru," He said sternly, "You can't blame yourself for what happened."

"I'm weak!" She cried out towards the sky, "If only I was stronger! I-I could've saved him." She was pulled into a tight embrace and her sobs were muffled against the older male's chest.

"Shh," He patted her head, "You did what was needed. You did what he asked of you and you did it with the pride of a ninja."

"But-" Naru tried to push him away but Kakashi proved much stronger.

"Do not waste the last chance Sasuke's given you," As the silver haired man spoke he felt his student tense in his arms, "You accomplished his last request and he would be proud of you. All you need to do is take a step forward. You're not alone." His words struck a chord in her heart and Naru cried out all her grief, with her own tears and not the blood of Sasuke's eyes. "It's alright now." Kakashi mumbled. Naru leaned into him feeling drowsiness come over her as her tears dried up into quiet sobs.

**_Kit,_** Kurama said softly as he sat in his cage,**_ you were never alone._** Naru nodded feeling safe and gave into sleep.

* * *

"Mmm…" Naru shifted in her sleep wrapping her arms around a strange source of warmth. It wasn't soft but hard, though not unpleasant. She tightened her grip and wriggled closer.

**_Uh kit,_** the fox tried to get her attention. _What is it?_ Naru asked sleepily.**_ You might want to open your eyes and see what that source of warmth actually is…_**Naru obediently opened her eyes and found herself face to face with a black-clad chest. _Huh?_ Just light the night before her eyes travelled up and she found herself face to face with her masked sensei.

"Did you sleep well?" He asked mischievously. Naru looked at their position slightly mortified. All the shifting and wriggling she did somehow landed her on top, practically straddling the Hatake.

"Aah!" She quickly scrambled off him and onto the far side of the bed, noting she was still in her hospital gown. "What happened?" She said trembling lightly. Kakashi chuckled, his student was just so cute and innocent sometimes.

"Well-" He was cut off as the doors burst open and everyone who was in the hospital room yesterday burst in.

"Kakashi!" Tsunade yelled furiously, "Why did you not enlighten us that you had found Naru yesterday? We were searching for her all night!" She seemed to finally notice the girl who was hiding under the covers on the same bed as said man. Everyone followed her eyes and immediately jumped to the wrong conclusion.

"Hatake!" Yelled a frightening Iruka, "I'm going to castrate you." Gaara quickly hurried over to Naru's side ignoring the fact that his sand had formed deadly spears aimed at the odd eyed male. Hinata and Neji were out for vengeance with their Byakugan activated while Gai and Lee were sobbing about the unyouthfulness of the situation. Sakura was cracking her knuckles along with her master and Shizune was mumbling about trying out a new poison. Tenten had pulled out her scroll full of pointy objects and was making a target for his lower regions. Kiba, Sai, Choji, Shino and Ino stood shock still while Shikamaru was formulating some sort of plan. Kankuro was just plain confused but his sister had whipped out her fan. One look at Kurenai sent him shivering while Asuma looked at him with pity. Even Anko had it out for him and Kakashi was pretty damn sure it was just because she wanted to see some bloodshed. Jiraiya looked the most confused, having his inner pervert want to congratulate the soon to be deceased Hatake and his guardian side wanting to be part of the murder.

"I'm just going to say this now," Kakashi said clearing his throat, "I didn't do anything." His hands were held up in a sign of defence.

"It's true I guess." Naru explained, "I was a bit hysterical and Kakashi-sensei helped me calm down. He really didn't do anything." Everyone calm down and her friends began gushing over her. Kakashi stood to the side, observing the blonde young woman with a warm look in his eyes. You'd have to be blind to miss the sheer adoration and love in them, but Naru was never the most observant person.

* * *

**A/N **And that's the end of that chapter.

I hope none of you are too put off by the sudden gaining of the Sharingan, but it will be necessary for her future interactions with the Uchiha.

Here's some jutsu info;

**Name:** Shitai Kyushu-ho (Corpse Absorption Technique)  
**Classification: **Kinjutsu**  
Rank: **S-rank**  
Class: **Supplementary/Offensive**  
Range:** User must make contact with target**  
Summary: **A forbidden jutsu created by Orochimaru. It's meant for use on a corpse to absorb the victim's body and thus their techniques and skills. An affinity for every element can be gained this way but it cannot pick up bloodlines. When used on a living person they are only partially absorbed, draining most of their chakra and a chance at leaving them in a comatose. Obviously, takes more effort to perform the attack on a living person.

**Name:** Ketsueki Iten (Blood Transfer)  
**Classification: **Kinjutsu**  
Rank: **S-rank**  
Class: **Supplementary  
**Range:** User must make contact with target**  
Summary: **Made by Sasuke Uchiha using Orochimaru's extensive knowledge. It transfers the bloodline of the user to its designated target through blood. In the example of Sharingan, Sasuke let his blood flow over Naru's eyes, blinding her for a short amount of time as her body adjusted. After using the jutsu the user will no longer be able to use his bloodline, and there will be no traces of it in their body, as if they never had it.

And that's it. I will be doing a short description of new jutsu after each chapter.


	4. Epilogue to the Prologue

**A/N** ARHGHARHAH!

The final part of the prologue!

Well Let's get this thing done!

* * *

**~Prologue – EPILOGUE TO THE BEGINNING**

**Another 2 years after – Ruins of Konoha… Naru aged 18**

"How dare you!?" Naru cried at the masked figure in front of her. She looked around the ware torn battlefield. The fourth shinobi war had finally happened. Kabuto, Orochimaru's slimy apprentice had joined forces with Akatsuki and together they had attacked all of the hidden villages for their jinchuriki. Brave shinobi had been resurrected with Edo Tensei and loved ones were pitted against each other. Sasuke and Itachi, who had somehow planned ahead for this, managed to stop Kabuto's jutsu but it was too late as the damage was already done. The Konoha 11, Sand siblings, all of the Kages, shinobi and civilian alike everyone had died.

**_What a fool,_** Kurama uttered,**_ what is the point of world domination when you've destroyed half of it?_**

Naru and looked to the man at her feet who had died taking a killing blow meant for her. His face was pulled into a loving smile despite the fact he had two large holes drilled into his torso. His once silver gravity defying hair was dull and matted with blood, falling limply around his face. "Kakashi." Naru brought a hand to touch the ring which hung around her neck, brushing past Tsunade's necklace in the process. A plain band of metal made from melted parts of her father's Hiraishin kunai and Sakumo Hatake's white light chakra sabre.

"What a shame," Madara said mockingly, "Was he you lover?"

"You piece of trash!" Naru growled, "How dare you talk about him like that." She was going to tear the zombie apart and feed the remains to feral animals.

**_I share your feelings._** Kurama rumbled in his cage.

"Trash?" echoed the disillusioned man, "I'm a god! And as soon as I have the Kyuubi my Eye of the Moon plan will finally come to pass." Naru bent down and apologised to her former sensei and lover, pressing a final kiss onto his forehead before reaching for the chain she knew held his own ring of the matching pair. She slipped it off his head and onto her own before shifting into a fighting stance.

"You aren't a god." Naru said seriously, "You are a dead man." Madara merely laughed her off as his chakra began to swirl around him, forming the ever-formidable deity.

"Do you remember Susanoo?" He questioned, "He will be your end." She bristled at his haughty tone with her own chakra seeping from her skin.

"Let's go, Kurama!" A blast of angry, red chakra erupted from her, sending dust flying into the air and pushing back Madara a couple of inches. When the entire mess cleared it was a face-off between a living legend and the Kyuubi no Kitsune.

**_"I have waited for this day."_** Kurama told her as the two of them sat together in her mind, remotely detached yet still focused on the fight.

"While I am here he cannot control you," Naru said pleased, "Like this I wonder if he can defeat you." The fox thrashed its tails, slamming the down where Madara had been only moments before.

"It's nice to see you again Kyuubi!" Madara greeted as Susanoo fired off black fireballs.

**"Scum!"** They both replied with an angry snarl. A ball of energy formed in the fox's mouth before it was ingested and brought back up as a large beam, completely obliterating the opposing fireballs. Madara purely blocked the oncoming attack with a sweep of Susanoo's sword.

"It's no use, I know every one of your abilities." The masked antagonist said in a snide tone. "You'd be better off just giving up."

**"I've told you this before teme!"** Naru snapped, "**I'll never give up and I'll never run. I will defeat you and I never go back on my word. That is my nindo!"** Madara sighed as if she was the most pitiful thing he had ever seen.

"And that's why fools like you die so early." He didn't even bother to dodge the next incoming swipe, letting go through him as if he was suddenly mist and reappearing beside the claw.

"Izanagi." Naru muttered with dislike. She thought of it as the cheat of the shinobi world. As long as the user had chakra, which Madara certainly had an abundance of, they were made virtually immortal as reality and illusion twisted to their will.

**_"In that case, you know what to do."_** Kurama said with a smirk, **_"But first, you need to get out of this form." _** The giant fox destabilized fading into a mist of chakra before condensing and lightening into a gold coloured shroud around the girl.

"Oho?" This new form certainly piqued his interest until he caught her eyes. The blue that could have been likened to the ocean was gone and in place were the furious red of the Sharingan. "Why do you have those eyes?" His tone was calm yet undoubtedly menacing. The girl was no Uchiha and he didn't take kindly to thieves. Naru stayed silent, refusing to him the satisfaction of knowing. "No matter. In the end I will merely have to rip them out of your skull."

"Just try it!" She dared flashing through a series of hand seals, "Hyoton – Gekido Hiryu!" The air shimmered as water molecules condensed before a frigid ice dragon bust out, rushing towards him.

"That's something I haven't seen before." Madara commented, following through with the same seals. A copy of the dragon shot out, clashing heads with Naru's. They tore each other apart before their remains misted into the air.

"Che," She spat at the ground, "I should've guessed an ordinary jutsu wouldn't have worked. "Well then, a battle of the cursed eyes it is." Naru summoned up the black flames which consumed his body. But he simply stepped through them without a care.

**_I feel like we'll be here all day if he continues to change fate._** Kurama muttered, voicing his displeasure.

"Izanagi. The Uchiha clan's ultimate technique." Madara spread his arms wide as Susanoo's sword came swinging down on her, "Death cannot catch me and I have power beyond belief in my control. I decide my own fate. What else could I be other than god?"

**_A fool?_**

"Trash?" His response was to send more fireballs towards her, obviously not pleased. Naru dodged them with ease, the added speed of the shroud making it a fair bit easier. _Now how was this supposed to work?_ She thought whilst keeping her distance and rolling out of harm's way. _Ah, I had Weasel explain it once but it's no good, I forgot…_

**_You are lucky that I am here then. _**The fox commented. **_I will pass on my memory but you will have the trouble of recreating it._** It was as if she had an epiphany as the answer popped into her head.

"Thanks." She muttered. Naru looked at the looming figure behind Madara, it would probably be best to get rid of it first. First she created two well-made clones, sending them out to distract him while she charged up. She concentrated her chakra into the palm of her right hand, forming a simple Rasengan before adding more and more elements to it. "This is Arashi no Rasengan," The blonde explained, "My most destructive version of the Rasengan. I haven't tried it out before so be glad you'll be the first.

"I'm honoured." He answered sarcastically. She didn't hold back at all, charging him with the miniature storm in the palm of her hand. She slowed a few steps before him and threw the jutsu before jumping back as far as possible. The ball seemed to float in front of him, unleashing blades of wind in all directions as it slowly expanded. Strangely enough it enveloped the battlers and Madara didn't feel any of the expected pain. "What is this?"

"Arashi no Rasengan." Naru panted, "Right now were in the eye of the storm. The range is a lot bigger than I expected."

**_Our defence may not be enough._** Kurama intoned. _It doesn't matter,_ Naru answered.

"It's beginning." Small sparks appeared in the air before the force of the attack came crushing down on the two of them.

"Impressive." Madara commented. His guardian deity took the brunt of the force for him but he wasn't exempt and found himself forced to his knees.

"How does it feel to kneel before me?" Naru asked, struggling to stand herself. "And this is just the start." He soon realised she wasn't kidding as he felt the condensed power of the storm tear into him. The earth shook and as the attack cleared up there were two bodies left in a crater the size of Konoha.

**_How do you feel kit?_** Kurama asked as she struggled to stand.

"Why even bother asking?" She responded, "But at least it got rid of his Susanoo."

"I commend your effort." Madara began, standing up to face her, "But it looks like it took a lot of effort to perform."

"Hah! You kidding?" Naru put up a false pretence, "I could do this all day long!"

"I don't understand why you keep fighting," His mask was cracked but still managed to stay on his face, "What do you even have left to fight for?" Naru gritted her teeth, jumping in to engage in close combat. The active Sharingan in both their eyes made the battle impossible to follow as they continuously reacted to each other's predicted moves.

"Gah!" His arm flashed forward and caught her neck, dangling the smaller woman in front of him.

"This has gone on long enough. I'll be taking the fox back now." He placed his hand flat on her abdomen before curling his fingers, digging them into her flesh.

"Aarhg!" Naru felt the beginning of the soul removal and struggled frantically. She leaned in and gave him a vicious bite to his collarbone, tearing off a large chunk of flesh. Her efforts were rewarded as Madara withdrew his hand and tossed her aside, examining his wound.

"That hurt you little whore!" Naru laughed and spat out the blood from her mouth. She slowly staggered back up into standing position.

"It's not like you tasted great." She flicked through more seals.

"Another original jutsu, aren't you creative?" He replied mimicking her.

"Suiton – Nejibana!" A thick rope of water snaked out towards him, splitting and dividing. His own jutsu stayed in a single whip like form, "What's the point of copying a jutsu you don't know how to use?" Each individual tendril either pierced the ground in front of him or latched onto a limb. He tried to pull a particular one off his arm but as he touched it a shard like flower grew, piercing both his hand and arm. It wasn't long before he was bound by the constricting jutsu though as soon as he should have been impaled he vanished and appeared behind Naru, sending her flying with a well-aimed kick.

"It was a nice trick, but something like that won't affect me." He explained. Naru flipped in the air, landing neatly on her feet.

"It was worth a try." She sighed and brought her hand out in front of her, "Enton – Kagutsuchi."

"Hm?" He watched as the black flames of Amaterasu appeared before, condensing and combining to for a blade. He figured the only thing that made it possible for her to hold was the gold coloured chakra shroud. The blonde let out a worthy war cry, dashing towards him, sword in hand. He didn't dare try to mimic her, knowing exactly how devastating the everlasting flames could be.

"Hyah!" She swung low and he flipped back, making sure nothing on his person touched the blade.

"That's a dangerous weapon you have. I have never though you could use Amaterasu in such a way." He mentally stored the information away for future use. She dashed in again and he was allowed to witness the true effect of the blade. A small nick on his waist burned, infecting the nearby area and eating away at his flesh. "A truly frightening blade." In another lifetime he would have loved to have the girl as his right hand, but now she was just the last barrier between him and his goals. As he was about to counter she jumped back, maintaining a safe distance. She continued to swing wildly at him, diving in and them retreating when he looked about to retaliate. More than anything it was frustrating. She aimed for his left knee and once again, to evade, he flipped back. He would have fired back with his own jutsu, his hands already raised in the beginnings of a seal, but the look on her face stopped him. The cold, calculating eyes of his own clan that stared straight at him combined with a chilling and victorious smirk.

"What?" He asked, feeling the unease. He looked down at his waist and felt the dread at the realisation. "Izanami." He uttered.

* * *

"I win." She stated, stepping back from the man trapped in her genjutsu. Dispelling the sword and shroud, Naru took a look around, wishing that the scenery were a genjutsu too.

**_Even if he knows about Izanami, it is another matter to escape it._** Kurama said with a foxy smirk so wide it threatened to split his face. **_For someone who believes that everything they do is right and within reason, well he'll be trapped there for eternity._**

"Yeah." Naru stepped back, it was unnerving to see the man just standing there, staring blankly at the wasteland of a battlefield.

**_I would love to spend my days sitting here as he slowly rots, but considering how the fool managed to stay alive for so long I am not so sure anymore._** There was a slightly movement behind him which appeared to be wagging tails. **_Either way I am content. Thank you kit, for fulfilling your promise._**

"No, not yet," Naru smiled lightly and used the blood from her hands to draw a seal on the ground. It mimicked the same seal on her stomach with small additions around the border. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu – Shuuseihan." The seals trembled and swirled before producing a large puff of smoke. Once cleared sitting in front of Naru was a small one-tailed version of the Kyuubi.

**_"Kit,"_**He said in a surprisingly high voice, **_"What is this?"_**

"I was actually looking up ways to release you from the seal, albeit with some limitations, and it was supposed to be a gift for helping me out all the time." Naru said with an empty tone, "You're still connected to me and I have control over you powers but, you have a body. It's an end of war gift."

**_"Can I have the honours then?!"_** Kurama asked excitedly like a small child.

"Go ahead. Restriction level 2 release." Naru formed a one-handed tiger seal as a small portion of the Kyuubi's powers were restored. He was now roughly the size of a small house and had three tails. "Actually, wait a second." She walked up to the frozen figure and used the handle of a kunai to smash through the mask. What greeted her was an ominous surprise. "Who…who is he?" She had read enough history books and visited the Valley of the End enough times to recognize Uchiha Madara's face, but this man, was not him.

**_"…I do not recognize him."_** The fox replied. **_"I can guarantee you this is the same man that destroyed your village but this is not the man that controlled me."_**

"Then, is Madara still alive?" Naru asked with a steely tone. If she had to she would go to the ends of the earth to hunt him down.

**_"Those eyes are Madara's eyes. I assure you."_** Kurama confirmed,**_ "It is possible he conspired with this man but without his eyes he is as good as dead. This kind of revenge, it will have to do."_** He was disappointed but there was little he could do about it now. Without further questioning the fox tore into the stranger's throat, slowly devouring the trapped man. While he was feasting Naru made her way back to Kakashi, who still laid dead on the bloodstained earth.

"Kashi." She knelt beside him and propped his head on her lap, finally shutting his eyes with a sweep of her hand. "Did you see? I avenged you and everyone else so now you can all sleep peacefully." She didn't move from her spot until the fox came padding up to her, his already red muzzle died with his enemy's blood. Only now that she was sure the masked male was dead, did she dare drop her dojutsu.

**_"It feels strange to have eaten after so long."_** He nudged her arm with his snout, marveling at the fact he could do so,**_ "And even stranger that I can touch you."_**

"So that time when I was five-"

**_"Illusion."_** He answered, **_"Your father wouldn't have made it that easy for me to kill you."_** She shook her head in disbelief, so all those years she had been afraid when he actually couldn't harm her. **_"Now kit, how about I give you a gift as well?"_**

"Well, I could kill for some ramen right now." Naru joked.

**_I have something much better in mind."_** He dipped his tail into a pool of Kakashi's blood and began drawing a series of character's and seals on the ground. Naru even though she was proficient in fuinjutsu had no idea what the fox was writing.

"What are you doing?" the blonde asked.

**_"It is a surprise. I will need some time and a lot of blood,"_** He looked at the battlefield, **_"We have plenty of blood but this will take roughly forty-eight hours."_** Naru nodded.

"I'll wait then and use this time to give everyone a proper burial." She summoned hundreds of shadow clones and sent them off to bury the dead while she personally attended to the bodies of her friends.

* * *

The sun had set and risen twice by the time Kurama had finished and all of the casualties had been buried leaving a blood-soaked, barren wasteland.

**_"Kit,"_** Kurama waved Naru over while she inspected the seal. It was about fifty metres in diameter and each part of it was filled with swirls of blood. **_"This is my gift to you."_** It was beautiful in a way only a seal master could appreciate.

"What does it do?" Naru asked.

**_"It sends us back to the past."_** Kurama explained.

"Back?" Naru looked exhausted.

**_"We will go back and become new people,"_** He paused, **_"Well, you will become a new person, and I will still be a fox."_**

"What good does going back do?" Naru asked frustrated, "We'll just have to go through this pain all over again."

**_"But you have the power to change it."_** Kurama continued. Naru looked up at his with dwindling hope in her eyes, **_"When we go back you won't be Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze anymore. You will be a stranger in that timeline. You will need a new identity."_**

"I'm tired." She admitted, slumping down to her knees, "Going back would waste their sacrifice, and I don't know if I'll be able to handle losing them again."

**_"What a strange thing humans are."_** The fox walked over and sat itself in front of her, **_"If you go back no sacrifices would have been made. If you cannot lose them then protect them. Though this of course, is of your own choosing. I will stay by your side but here, in this world, you will be lonely. If you are content to leave this behind and search for a peaceful life, that is fine, no one would dare blame you for it, but isn't that the same as giving up?"_** The girl's eyes seemed to sharpen as she listened, **_"Only once you know you have tried everything can you be content. It is in your nature."_**

"…Can I have some time?" She asked quietly. The fox nodded and laid his head on his paws. She didn't move from her spot, spending several hours just sitting in thought. "How far can we go?" Naru finally asked, feeling strange after such a long silence, "And will there be any side effects?"

**_"For the amount you travel back, your age will be reduced by half that. We have enough chakra for a little less than two decades, meaning you will likely find yourself in you eight year old body."_** He explained, **_"Your lifespan will also be reduced. I can't say how much for certain due to your exceptional healing abilities and vitality in general, maybe it won't affect you at all, or maybe it will take the greatest toll."_**

"I see." She went back to thinking. A shorter life didn't worry her too much, she was a shinobi after all, in fact it was amazing the Sandaime managed to hold on for as long as he did. "Alright," Naru stood tall for the first time in a while, coming to a final answer, "Let's go then. There's nothing left for me here."

**_"Good choice."_** A grin made its way onto his face, **_"It would have been rather boring here."_**

"But at least everyone's at peace." Naru scoured the landscape, "With this the age of the ninjas is finished. I wonder how the survivors will carry on but that life is not for me."

**_"Is there anything you wish to bring? It has to be able to fit in my mouth though."_**

"What an odd requirement." She handed him her three necklaces which he dutifully placed in his jaws.

**_"I suggest you start thinking of a name."_** The fox advised as they made their way to the very centre of the seal. **_"Remember that while doing this you are giving up your identity, your right to exist as your current self."_**

"I know. I guess my current name would cause quite a stir." She admitted with a small laugh.

**_"Indeed."_** Kurama agreed.

"It has to be awesome then. And I'll have an epic title to go with it!" She looked more excited than she should be.

**_"…Why not Yoko?"_** He caught the way she halted her steps, and subconsciously brought a hand to her abdomen.

"No, that name is not for me." She answered slowly and deliberately with a sad look. "How about we think about it once we get there?" She spared the battlefield one last look before leaving it all behind.

* * *

**A/N **Yeah! And now we can get rolling onto the actual story.

I realize when I'm typing i put in little facts and sentences which make complete and total sense to me but then again I know exactly whats happening so it might be harder for others to pick up...

Her's a couple more jutsu;

**Name:** Hyoton – Gekido Hiryu (Raging Ice-Dragon)  
**Classification: **Ninjutsu**  
Rank: **A/S-rank (Depending on how much chakra used) **  
Class: **Offensive  
**Range:** Mid to Long**  
Summary: **An original technique by Naru. A large frozen dragon is created from the water vapours in the air (or from available water source) and homes in on the target. Upon contact, ice begins to form from wherever the dragon has touched or bitten spreading along the target. Varying levels of chakra are needed depending on if water is readily available, the targets rough distance, the intensity of the freezing bite desired. Though, no matter what the attack requires an enormous amount of chakra.

**Name:** Arashi no Rasengan (Storm Spiralling Sphere)  
**Classification: **Ninjutsu, Kinjutsu**  
Rank: **S-rank**  
Class: **Offensive  
**Range: **Close range but effects a large area**  
Summary: **Created by Naru and is currently her most powerful attack. It incorporates the elements Water, Wind and Lightning into a Rasengan making a miniature storm. If hit by it, the target will undoubtedly be destroyed (shredded, ripped into pieces, blasted into oblivion). Naru creates a clone to help her add elements to a Rasengan she creates. The attack is then thrust at her enemy. It is known to create a crater the size of Konoha when aimed at the ground and takes up monstrous amounts of chakra.

**Name:** Nejibana (Twisted flower)  
**Classification: **Ninjutsu**  
Rank: **A-rank**  
Class: **Offensive  
**Range: **Mid to Long**  
Summary: **Water forms in the air and vines snake along to entrap the enemy. It constricts and winds around the enemy, blooming flowers of ice at any point to pierce them. Another of Naru's creations, it was named after the deceased Neji.

**Name:** Kuchiyose no Jutsu – Shuuseihan (Summoning Jutsu – Revised)  
**Classification:** Ninjutsu, Space-Time Ninjutsu**  
Rank: **S-rank**  
Class: **Offensive, Defensive, Supplementary  
**Range: -  
Summary: **Created and used by Naru to summon the Kyuubi from inside the seal. Its effect is permanent bringing the Bijuu into the outside world. The jinchuriki still has control over the beast and limits the amount of power available to it.

As always thanks for reading. I will try to update regularly but it's probably not going to be a 100% on-time-all-the-time thing.


	5. Revert

**A/N** Welcome to the Chapter 1 of 'Tender Sea'.

Since she has to adopt a new identity Naru will have to get a new name. The title was a small hint but you'll see it pretty early on in this chapter.

I forgot to mention before (even if it was obvious), but;

_**This is for demon/summon speech (mostly Kurama)**_

_And Italics are for thoughts_

As soon as her new name is revealed I will stop using Naru unless she's dreaming or having a flashback.

For those who have read the original like before this will be similar and different in ways (...ahahaha, I'm recycling authors notes as well), so hopefully you won't get bored 're-reading it'.

So without further ado~

* * *

**~Chapter 1 - REVERT**

"Minato-sensei, it smells… wrong over here," A silver haired boy stated.

"Look," A young brunette called in response, "This might be where it's coming from," The blond jounin and her teammate walked over to the bushes where she was staring at a thick trail of blood.

"Well, I guess we should follow it." Minato stated with a sigh. This was meant to be a simple scouting mission around Konoha, but the amount of blood here meant a death, possibly of one of their comrades. Hey signaled his students and they followed the trail while staying behind him and hopefully out of harm's way. They all heard it before they saw anything, a low growl through the forest that asked them to turn back. Of course being ninja, a wild animal wasn't too much to worry about so they pressed on. Minato raised his hand to push away the last few branches revealing a small clearing that smelt like death.

"What happened here?" The girl asked, examining the two corpses which lay on the forest floor. Both were male ninja, probably about the same age as their sensei, and seemed to have been mauled to death by a wild animal. Said animal stood fiercely, a couple steps away, growling at the intruders.

"That fox, it can't have taken down two trained ninja." The boy commented in disbelief. The fox snapped at him indignantly.

"It looks like it did." Minato said slowly reaching for a kunai in case the situation turned bad. At the slightest movement the fox turned its eyes to him and the blond was surprised with the intelligence he could see. Deeming the three newcomers safe the fox stood down and returned to what it was doing before, scavenging anything useful from the corpse. It searched around and pulled of a headband from the nearest body, bringing it to the team.

"Iwa." The girl red as it was dropped by their feet.

"The fox did us a favour then," Her teammate responded, "Though I don't understand why it's being so docile now." The fox growled at him but moved on, picking off the ninja's tool pouch. It sent them a look and motioned ahead.

"This is unreal," The brunette stated, "Are we supposed to follow?"

"Your guess is as good as mine Rin." Their sensei replied. The fox looked impatient and kept pointing forward with its paw. "I guess we might as well." The animal nodded its approval.

"I wonder where it's leading us." Rin pondered as they kept a normal pace, making sure to stay a couple steps away in case the fox went feral.

"Up ahead there's a shallow stream." The boy remembered. He was correct, the fox had led them to running water before tracking across it and behind a large tree.

"I guess we better see what it wanted to show us." Minato wondered what he should put in his mission report later on. Maybe something about the apparent increase of the intelligence of wildlife in the forest?

"Sensei!" Rin called, having passed him while he was thinking, "Come quick!"

"What is it?" He dashed and arrived just as she finished talking. "A girl?" There lying a top a bed of leaved was a young girl, covered in blood and wounds from head to toe with her clothes torn to scraps. "Rin can you check her?" The fox stayed back, silently watching.

"…She's alive." The brunette responded, feeling a small pulse.

"What should we do, Minato-sensei?" The boy asked.

"We'll take her back with us. She needs to be treated." He bent down and gently lifter her up in his arms. He wondered if this was what the fox wanted all along, for someone to save this girl.

* * *

Naru's eye fluttered open and she found herself staring at a stark white ceiling. She turned her head and surveyed her surroundings. To her left was a door and more white walls while to her right was a window. "A hospital?" as she spoke Naru noticed her voice sounded all wrong. It was too high compared to her usual soft tenor. She slid her legs to the side of the bed and slowly stood up, instantly taking note of the height difference, and walked towards the mirror by the wall. There she realised hearing someone tell you that you're going to de-age and finding yourself in your younger body are two vastly different things. She brought a hand to touch her whiskered cheeks and her reflection did the same.

"This is me?" She lifted up the flimsy hospital gown she wore and examined her body anxiously. The thing that caught her attention first was the bold, black seal on her stomach, the Hakke no Fuin against her pale skin which should have been tanned, standing out in all its glory. Naru frowned slightly, it was probably a side effect of her remade summoning jutsu. Speaking of that, where was Kurama now? Her eyes trailed up to find a peculiar scar on her chest, precisely above her heart. It was quite large, about the size of a clenched fist, appearing as if someone had torn a hole through her chest. The matching scar she knew would be on her back confirmed the fact. Both blemishes were completely smooth and you wouldn't be able to tell it was there from touch. It was the only scar the Kyuubi wasn't able to completely heal, probably because she had died from it, if only for a minute or two. Letting the dress fall back down She turned her attention to her hair which was long enough to trail on the floor. Naru reminded herself to cut it at a later date. A gentle breeze blew into the room and she couldn't resist the temptation to see out the window. The sight nearly brought her to tears, Konoha, in all its vibrant beauty.

"Hello?" She heard a female voice shout from outside, "What's wrong?!" A nurse rushed in and was surprised to see Naru up and about. "Oh my! How can you be standing?" Naru cocked her head confused.

"Excuse me," She said politely, "What happened to me?"

"Well, I don't know the details exactly but I heard a couple of our shinobi found you barely alive at the outskirts of our village when they were coming back from their mission yesterday." The nurse began her physical examination gasping as she noticed most of her wounds were already healed. "This is impossible!" She also examined the seal curiously but being an average medic, couldn't make heads or tails of it.

"I'm a fast healer." Naru shrugged but the nurse looked at her in disbelief, "It's something that's been passed down in my family." She added hoping the nurse would pass it off as a bloodline. She did and moved onto another topic.

"What is your name little one?" the nurse asked gently.

"I am…" She thought hard, "My name is Miyu."

"That's a beautiful name honey," the nurse patted the newly named Miyu on the head, "Do you have a last name?"

"Un!" The blonde gave her a dazzling look and just mashed her names together, "Uzunami!"

"Well I haven't met anyone with that last name before." The nurse said after a moment of thought, "Do you know where your parents are?" Miyu contemplated what to say but just went with the safest option.

"They're probably…dead." There was a moment of awkward silence as the nurse gave her a pitying look while the blond acted as sad as she could, which truthfully wasn't very hard. It was right about now that Konoha was in the middle of the third shinobi war, orphans weren't that uncommon anymore.

"Can you tell me who saved me?" Miyu asked politely, "I'd like to thank them."

"Of course." The nurse didn't see any problem with it seeing that her patient was pretty much fully healed. Though, she would have to speak to the Hokage about that. "You're in luck. They're here at the moment while one of their member's gets a check-up for his eye." Miyu nodded and allowed the nurse to lead her down the hallway. She had a strange feeling in her stomach about meeting her saviours but even if she was in the past in her younger body, she should show her gratitude. "They're in here." The nurse knocked the door and guided the small girl inside before leaving to continue her job. Whatever Miyu was about to say left her mind as she ended up face to face with her hero, the future fourth Hokage, her father.

"Why hello there!" Minato said in a surprised yet cheery voice, "It's nice to see you doing well."

"Um…" She felt extremely small at the moment, "Thank you for saving me, sir."

"Hahaha," His laughter surprised her, "There's no need to be formal. I'm Namikaze Minato. You can just call me Minato if you want."

"Then Minato-san." The time-traveler said quietly, bowing slightly, "My name is Miyu. Uzunami Miyu." She felt bad about lying but resolved to take up the identity to make the statement true.

"What a polite kid." Another voice commented. She looked up to see another girl scrutinizing her carefully. "And not a scar in sight."

"So she's awake." Miyu's eyes widened in shock as she met the new speaker's gaze. His face was younger and he had some bandages covering his left eye but still had the ever-present mask.

"Let me introduce you," Minato began, "These are my two students Nohara Rin and Hatake Kakashi, guys this is Uzunami Miyu." With his words she managed to snap out of her daze to give a small smile, but Minato couldn't help but think it looked slightly off. The jounin could only see why when he caught her gaze. Her eyes were haunted, underneath the façade of happiness, he could see every emotion that shouldn't belong. "What happened Miyu?" He asked gently, "For you to end up in that state…"

"I-" She was at a lost. What should she say? What could she say? "I don't know." She looked to the ground avoiding eye contact. It was all too obvious she had something to hide.

"Then can I ask how you recovered so quickly?" Rin questioned. As a medic she was extremely interested in the small girl's body. They had come across her completely dyed red. Yet, here she was only a few days after without a single scar.

"I heal faster than normal people..." Miyu answered.

"How much faster?" Kakashi asked, genuinely interested. She brought her arm to her mouth a bit down hard, before showing the now wounded limb to the team. Within minutes it was completely healed.

"That's incredible!" Rin exclaimed, inspecting the arm closer. It was purely fascinating to see the cells knit back together and there wasn't even any trace of damaged.

"A bloodline?" Kakashi wondered.

"I think so," Minato agreed, "Or she could just have an incredible healing rate."

"What a convenient ability," The boy noted, "Especially for a ninja." Suddenly the group was interrupted by the dramatic entry of a fox. The bundle of red fur came flying through the window stumbling to a stop at Minato's feet.

"Yip!" It looked up innocently.

"Huh, is that the same one from before?" Rin asked in surprise.

"Kurama." Miyu breathed out in relief. She knelt and gave the fox a tight hug.

**_How do you feel?_** His familiar voice echoed in her head. _A bit sluggish but otherwise I'm okay._

"Miyu-chan, is this fox a friend of yours?" Minato asked curiously.

"He is my irreplaceable partner." She replied and Kurama couldn't help but feel mildly touched.

**_Here, don't forget these._** He rummaged around in the fur by his neck and pulled out the three necklaces.**_ I washed them in a river._**

"Thank you." She retrieved the items and looped them around her neck before spotting something strange about the green crystal._ Did you modify it?_ She asked looking at now pointed piece. It kind of resembled a kunai in her opinion.

**_Of course. We cannot have two of such a valuable thing in this world so I altered it._** He answered.

"What's that?" Minato asked looking over her shoulder. Miyu started slightly and shied away

"They're my important treasures." She stated.

"Hmm." Minato gave her a strange look. He couldn't help the fact that they seemed vaguely familiar.

"So it's named Kurama?" Kakashi looked at the fox warily. He hadn't sensed its presence at all until it came crashing through the window.

"Yes." Miyu answered, standing back up.

"Since she's feeling better do you think we should take her to see Hokage-sama, Sensei?" Rin asked.

"Yeah I guess so." The blond sent the younger girl a thoughtful look, "But we really should get her something else to wear first."

* * *

Miyu took her time while walking. Taking the sounds, smells and sights from Konoha she had so sorely missed. She was disappointed when they reached the Hokage tower but at the same time anticipated meeting the Sandaime again. The group merely bypassed the receptionist, who seemed to shoot the animal concerned looks, and made their way up the stairs.

"Alright, we're here." Minato announced standing in front of a red door, which looked much newer than she had remembered. "Remember to treat the Hokage respectfully." He reminded each kid before finally opening the door and stepping into the room.

"Ah, Minato it's nice to see you." An aged but cheerful voice greeted. "Now, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Good afternoon Hokage-sama," The blond smiled. He didn't really know what else to say so he got straight to the point, "Do you remember the young girl my team found on the outskirts of Konoha?"

"Yes," Sarutobi shot Miyu a curious glance, "Is that the child? After what I was told I wasn't expecting her to be awake for quite some time."

"As far as I know it's probably a bloodline that allows for accelerated healing." Minato shrugged.

"And the fox?" Kurama had placed himself in front of Miyu, standing leisurely but also on guard.

"It's the same one mentioned in the report." Sarutobi let out a noise of recognition. So this was the animal who had apparently taken down two trained ninja.

"So, what exactly seems to be the problem, Minato?" the Sandaime asked using the interruption to take a break from his paper work.

"Honestly, I was wondering what we should do with her." Sarutobi turned his full attention to the girl.

"Why don't we figure it out then?" He smiled kindly and Miyu smiled back in turn, "If you don't mind Miyu-chan, I'd like to ask you some questions.

"Alright." She gave in reluctantly.

**_Do not worry too much and plead ignorance. You will not want to be treated as a spy._** Kurama advised.

"First off," The Hokage began, "Can you tell me how you came to be dying in the forest?"

"…I don't remember." As unconvincing as she had sounded in the hospital, the current Team 7 couldn't help but want to believe her when she said it this time around.

"Really? Nothing at all?" He pressed. Miyu shook her head in the negative.

"Then what do you remember. We know your name but is there anything else?" Sarutobi made a couple of signals to a hidden Anbu. Amnesiacs were hard to deal with depending on whether or not they were liars. He would get a specialist in.

"No, not really." Miyu refused to look him in the eyes so instead stared just a bit below.

"Not your mother or father?"

"I don't recall having met anyone before waking up in the hospital." There was a short silence as Hiruzen thought on his next question.

"Then what about the fox? He is yours isn't he?"

"…Yes, he a valuable friend." Miyu began slowly, "I know at least that much."

"What can you tell me about him?" Sarutobi continued, genuinely interested.

"Kurama and I have been together for a long time…probably." She said in an unsure tone. There was another silence but this time she was the one to break it.

**_Be careful with your words._** The fox warned and she gave a small nod in reply.

"Actually, there is something I'd like to request." Miyu began, "Please, would you allow me to become a shinobi of Konohagakure?" Her plea sent warning signals ringing in all of their heads.

"Why?" Kakashi asked abruptly. No matter how well she acted, she was suspicious. She was an unknown stranger.

"I don't know what else I could do." There was enough truth in this sentence to minimalize her guilt for lying.

"What do you mean?" Minato asked softly.

"I'm sorry for not telling you straight away but I was unaware of how you would react." Miyu bowed slightly as her mind played out the scene she would try to re-enact, "Actually aside from a name, my name, and Kurama, there are a handful of things I know I can do."

"Like what?" Sarutobi questioned.

"I know how to hold a kunai, to throw shurikens," She told him, "I can perform the Bunshin jutsu along with, Kawarimi, Henge, and Shunshin. I can tell you with a certainty, that I am a ninja."

"Hm." The Hokage hummed in thought and leaned back in his chair. A solid knock on the door interrupted the conversation but Sarutobi had expected it.

"You called Hokage-sama?" A male's voice came from outside.

"Ahh, Inoichi perfect timing. Please come in." Minato felt his eyes widen as the stranger was revealed to be the head of T.I. It could only mean one thing and it didn't sit too well with him.

"Am I interrupting something?" Yamanaka Inoichi asked, steeping in the room and glancing at those present.

"No, this is exactly the reason why I called you." Sarutobi stated. "I'm sure you've heard of Team 7's discovery."

"So this is the girl?" He caught on quick, but it honestly wasn't that difficult.

"Yes. Anyway, she has expressed a desire to enter our ranks but there is a slight problem." The Hokage continued. "Miyu is amnesiac."

"Really?" Inoichi looked doubtful.

"Yes." Minato confirmed, "But at the same time she remembers certain things… like her ninja abilities."

"So, why am I here?" He seriously hoped Hiruzen wouldn't suggest what he was thinking of.

"If you don't mind, please check her mind." He was. The head of T.I. sighed

"Are you sure. The mind is a delicate thing," He glanced at the girl who had remained silent since he had entered. "I'm more accustomed to breaking them and it isn't exactly easy on the target either." Minato physically winced and Rin wasn't looking to glad either. It was only Kakashi and the Hokage who remained impassive.

"I'll be fine." Miyu spoke up, "So you can go ahead." She garnered incredulous looks. "After all, I don't think you would have been called if Jiji didn't think you could do it." Sarutobi looked both surprised and impressed. It looked like she withheld more understanding and insight than he expected.

"That's true." Inoichi decided to ask once more, "So you're completely fine with this? If this is done probably, you'll suffer a mild headache but otherwise should be fine."

"Yeah." She could handle at least that much. She watched him bring his hands up to his clan's signature seal.

"Then we will begin." Those in the room watched in tentative silence as both bodies stilled after an initial impulse of chakra, waiting for the outcome.

* * *

**A/N** Thanks for taking the time to read :D

I thought that it wouldn't be fun if she got into the village too easily, so why not add mental interrogation?

As always there are a couple of clumsy sentences and probably grammatical errors but nothing too big as far as I can tell.

Just letting some familiar readers know that once this surpasses the original I'll be taking the story down. (It's confusing having so many similarly named documents)

Anyway, let me know how you liked the chapter or just the story in general.


	6. Allowance

**A/N** Yo!

Ahahhaha...hah... First off I'd like to apologize for (very) late and irregular updates. Just letting you know but fanfiction is a side thing...and I guess school takes priority, so with exams and all I don't think my updating will stabilize and become regular until after this year.

I just got through a round of school assessment so that explains my absence. Sorry for anyone that's been eagerly awaiting (it be nice if people were) the next chapter.

I typed rather furiously to get this done and I hope you all enjoy... (Though nothing much happens in this chapter...sorry...)

Anyway have fun reading :D

* * *

**~Chapter 2 - ALLOWANCE**

- - - - - _Mindscape_ - - - - -

"This is rather unique." Inoichi commented. The girl's mind was actually quite strange in fact. There was nothing that suggested anything of her, no shapes, colours, objects. He merely stood in a blank, white, hallway.

"How strange." Miyu added. Of course being her mind, she would be present with him. Inoichi easily assumed her surprised expression was from witnessing her conscience for the first time. "So, what exactly will you be doing?"

"It's just a simple investigation." He began walking forwards and his loud footsteps echoed down the hall. Miyu hurried to keep up, cursing her shorter limbs. She was ultimately confused. This white space was a vast change from the usual sewers, she could only assume Kurama changed something. Though, the overall format was similar so if she was correct they would be led to a large chamber soon.

"What is that?" It seems she was correct as they broke out of the hallway. It appeared that Kurama couldn't disguise everything as both of them stared up at the giant row of rusty bars. She shrugged, staying silent while the veteran ninja went over to investigate. "How odd." Just as she expected nothing was able to pass through the bars and he could easily rest his palm against the air between each strip of metal. "Do you happen to know what this could be or symbolise?"

"…the nurse at the hospital will probably report it later but there's a seal on my stomach." Miyu commented loosely, "I guess this is where it leads."

"So you don't remember what it's for?" He probed.

"It stores chakra." She said after a small silence. "Not my own. It acts like a secondary source."

"Hm." The Yamanaka was used to ninja sealing items in their body but wasn't storing more chakra redundant? Soldier pills would probably be more useful. "So, why don't we find the memories you do have?"

"How?" She was genuinely curious. Ino had never told her about what you could actually do with the human mind.

"As, uh…cliché as it sounds you must open your mind. I could force it out of you, but from what I've seen its excruciatingly painful…" Miyu shivered lightly. She had a high pain tolerance, sure, but that didn't mean she like the pain.

"I'll try my best then." She struggled to let down her walls, finally managing enough for glimpses of colour to appear on the floor they stood on.

"Down there then." Inoichi changed the direction of his attention, now focusing it downwards. "It seems memories appear at random locations. There was once a case where I had to look upwards for so long my neck ached." He was trying to lighten the atmosphere but Miyu couldn't help but feel slightly unsettled at the mention of his previous… victims. They both focused on the episodic flashbacks and at once Miyu could see they were false. Some were simply of her training but the scenery had been altered to keep confidentiality and any people were removed. "What style of taijutsu is this?" It looked familiar yet unquestionably new.

"My own style. Picked up here and there I guess." Since there were no memories of her acquiring it he could only rely on her word. It was one of the most severe cases of amnesia he had seen before. and it didn't look like she'd ever be getting back those lost memories.

"And there is nothing else you remember? What about your fox?" His words triggered more false memories. A small, red fox, frolicking in the undergrowth, flashing to an older image before finally reaching a scene that mirrored Kurama's grown form. "That really is all there is…" He muttered under his breath.

"I'm sorry I can't remember anything else." Miyu said apologetically. Maybe she was laying it on a little thick, but it would be more suspicious if she stayed completely silent.

"No, it's hardly your fault. There's nothing for you to be sorry about." He gave the room a final examination. "It seems that's about all we can do here. We should leave for now." He slowly formed the familial seal with his hands and released the jutsu.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

It was disconcerting for those in the room to watch the two, deathly still bodies, gazing emptily at each other. That was why they could safely safe they were relieved when, after a deep gasp, the two were brought back into the real world.

**_Welcome back kit._** Kurama intoned. Miyu shot him a knowing look that garnered an explanation which would come in due time.

"So? What did you find Inoichi?" The Hokage asked, folding his hands underneath his chin.

"She wasn't lying. She does indeed only remember her abilities and pet fox." Inoichi replied with a straight face. The fox growled slightly at him for being called a mere pet.

"Partner." Miyu corrected feeling the expected migraine come about.

"Ah, sorry. Partner fox then." The Yamanaka replied, "It also seemed that her memory loss is permanent."

"Permanent?" Rin echoed, looking concerned for the younger child.

"So then she has nowhere else to go." Kakashi surmised. He was much at ease now that they had the affirmation of the T.I. Head.

"I see." Sarutobi thought long and hard, "Then I don't see a problem with admitting her into Konoha. Minato, from now on she will be your responsibility until she can take care of herself. Is that alright with you?"

"I'd be happy to help." The cheerful jounin answered truthfully. Minato actually quite liked the girl. There was just something about her that caught his attention.

"I'll be setting up an enrolment into the Academy." The Hokage informed, "You'll be put into the graduating level but according to your skill you may be moved. For now I'd like to welcome you to Konohagakure, Uzunami Miyu."

* * *

Sarutobi leant back in his chair with his subordinate still standing in front of him. They waited until the more recent guests had left, already shown to be walking out of the tower as Inoichi peered out the window.

"Well then Inoichi, what's the full report?" The Hokage asked with a serious expression.

"That girl, whether she knows it or not, is hiding something," The Yamanaka began, "Her mind was completely blank with no outstanding shapes or colours. That in itself, while it does suggest amnesia, is impossible."

"How so?" Sarutobi pressed.

"It's because of how she acts. If you had nearly all your memories erased except for that of your ninken, I'm presuming, and other ninja abilities, wouldn't you act more like those ninja Danzo raises? As an emotionless war tool?" Inoichi questioned, "Miyu, as far as I can tell, is a weary and cautious girl, but from the small moment I spent with her she does have a personality. That in itself should be reflected in her mind."

"I see, then how do you propose she managed to clear her mind?" The Hokage asked.

"That's the bit I'm not so sure about. I'd have to say it's from an outside influence." Inoichi said thoughtfully, "I'd recommend first finding out what the seal on her is for."

"Seal?"

"Ah, I forgot that you haven't seen her hospital report yet." The blonde realised, "In her mind, there was a row of rusty bars, a giant cage of some sort. When I asked her about it she said it came from the seal on her abdomen and that it was used for storing extra chakra. Since it was the only thing that stood out in her mind it probably has some sort of relevance to her missing memories."

"I call back Jiraiya, but until then maybe Minato will be able to figure it out." Inoichi nodded in approval, and prepared to take his leave. "One more thing," The Hokage called to his back, "What do you think her threat level is?"

"Possibly a three. If she doesn't remember, congratulations, you've got a new ninja. If she does, then we have a possible spy, but her position in the village limits the amount of information she can acquire, and don't forget the fact she is just a child." He declared before leaving the Hokage to his thoughts, paperwork long forgotten.

* * *

"Welcome!" A younger Teuchi said in his friendly voice. "I see you've brought a new customer."

"Yeah this is Miyu." Minato introduced, "You'll be seeing a lot of her around Konoha from now on."

"Well I guess that's enough reason for everything to be on the house today."

"Are you sure?" Kakashi asked as he stared at his leader who was currently drooling from the smell.

"Of course! Your sensei is one of my best customers. What does it matter if I offer you guys a free meal every once in a while?" Teuchi gave a laugh, "So what'll it be."

"Pork for me." Rin ordered.

"I'll have beef." Kakashi decided.

"4 pork, 5 miso and 3 beef for me Teuchi!" Minato announced as his students gagged. Miyu was tempted to say 'the usual' but held it back. She was going to have to do a lot of adjusting.

**_Beef!_** Kurama ordered eagerly though no one but Miyu understood. She just added the item to her own list of orders.

"6 miso, 2 pork and 4 beef, please!" She announced proudly. Everyone stared in surprise.

"Can you even eat that much?" Rin asked.

"It's not a competition so you don't have to try and out do our idiot sensei." Kakashi added, but all worries were washed away anyway after seeing her down her first bowl like a glass of water. Something they had only seen Minato himself do. Meanwhile said jounin looked incredible proud shouting that he had finally found himself a protégé.

_So Kurama, what did you do?_ Miyu thought while relishing her meal. **_It's simple, I merely moved everything we wouldn't want the Yamanaka to see into the seal. _**The fox explained.**_ Since it is still inside your mind you're able to remember everything as much as before, but an outsider will only see what I've allowed._** The blonde nodded in approval. It was a smart move.

"So Miyu, do you have any questions?" Minato asked, jolting the girl out of her internal conversation.

"…Can I ask what's happening right now?" If possible it would be nice to know exactly when she had landed. She had her own guesses, but would like to have them confirmed.

"We are in the middle of the Third Shinobi War." Kakashi supplied, "It's a free for all, with every village for itself."

"Do you remember the other hidden villages?" Rin asked curiously. The girl nodded in response.

"Konohagakure, Iwagakure, Sunagakure, Kumogakure and Kirigakure." The girl listed.

"Correct." Minato praised, "There is really nothing else to say. The war's been going on for a while but at least it's finally turned in Konoha's favour." Miyu stored each bit of info away. That would mean Kanabi Bridge had been demolished and they were entering the last stretch of the war. It also meant she had been too late to spare Kakashi from the death of a comrade.

**_As cruel as this sounds, maybe that was for the better._** Kurama intoned. **_You cannot save everyone, and the child's death meant the development of Hatake's person._** Miyu didn't try to argue with him, suddenly feeling incredibly tired.

"…Miyu!"

* * *

- - - - - _Dream_ - - - - -

"Ne Shika," Naru rolled around on her friend's porch, watching a stray deer graze without a care, "How do you always know what to do?"

"Pft," The lazy strategist was sitting beside her, fanning himself to try and escape the sun's hot rays. "I don't always, but I at least know what I shouldn't do."

"Same thing." She played around with the water in the air, swirling about making different shapes. The brunet shook his head at her blatant show of skill, obviously trying to fight against boredom.

"Just observe you surroundings and double check what you already know, it isn't that hard." He yawned. "But then asking you to do anything mentally tasking is usually pointless."

"Hey!" The blond gave an indignant cry. The water fell from the air, splashing onto the grass.

"It's true, think about your fights. You just rush in headfirst where other people think of a tactic. You improvise, think in the moment. Most of us here can't do that so well." Shikamaru explained. She didn't know whether it was a compliment or not so she left it.

"What if it's not a fight? What if you get in a bad situation that there are just so many options and you don't know what the consequences for your actions will be?" She asked vaguely.

"I have no idea what you're going about… whatever it is it sounds troublesome." He sighed, "When did you start sounding all philosophical?"

"Since the Fourth Shinobi War came knocking on our door," The blonde commented dryly, "Anything could happen, I just don't want to be stuck somewhere where I don't know what to do." She was stressed and he could tell.

"Well, you always have all of us to fall back on." He said calmly, "I don't think anyone it stupid enough to let you go in alone."

"But what if I do? What if I can't rely on you guys?" Naru pressed.

"Once again, I doubt you will ever get to that point. Even if they're not Konoha's, you have countless allies out there. You will never be alone." There was a strange fierceness in his voice and a protective glint in his eyes.

"Shika…" She moved her attention to the deer that had stopped eating to look around.

"If you ever do get into that situation I'll have to automatically assume we're all dead since that's the only way it'll happen," He continued ignoring her startled look, "Then follow your gut instincts. It's the rawest form of intuition we humans have and it's probably already gotten you out of some tight spots."

"That's it? Just follow what my stomach is telling me to do?" She scrunched her nose up in concentration, "Nothing else?"

"Well in that situation what else could you do?" He shrugged and stood up, dusting his pants off, "Follow whatever hunches you get, observe you surroundings carefully, and make use of what's around you. There's a limit to how far thinking can get you-"

"Says the guy who's always at least a hundred steps ahead…" She mumbled under her breath which the Nara ignored.

"And you shouldn't worry needlessly. Go with the flow." He led the stray deer back into the forest in the direction towards its herd.

"You're too laidback." Naru grumbled.

"Yeah, yeah," He waved off her complaint, "It would make the others uneasy if I acted all worried, it's unlike me. That's why you should also return to your cheerful self." She huffed at him before smiling.

"I guess that's right." She moved into a sitting position and motioned for him to sit back down, "Anyway, I came here in the first place to tell you about the next mission. The details are in this scroll and I expect to see you in uniform at the gates tomorrow at 5:00am sharp." She chucked a deep-green scroll at him, a leaf tattoo on her left bicep coming into view.

"Hai Taicho." He gave her a lazy salute pausing as her yawned yet again.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

Miyu blinked blearily, feeling a heavy weight on her chest. Slowly sitting up she saw it was Kurama sleeping on top of her, yet pushing him off did nothing to alleviate the pressure. The fox yipped as he tumbled onto the floor and she was given a chance to look around the room. For the second time since entering the past, the blonde found herself in the white-walled room of Konoha's hospital. There must have already been someone nearby, because before long she was surrounded by the remainder of the current Team 7 and a familiar nurse.

"Miyu-chan, how are you feeling?" Minato asked concerned. It had been a shock for his team and Teuchi when the girl suddenly collapsed at the ramen store.

"Fine." She did a self-check of her body, "I feel alright."

"That's a relief." Rin sighed, "It was wrong to take you out of the hospital so soon. Despite your healing abilities, there would have been some sort of lasting effect of such extensive damage." Miyu allowed the training medic nin to look over her, though the present nurse was thoroughly put off.

"Your condition seems stable so I'll be leaving to check on some other patients." The woman announced, leaving the girl in Rin's capable hands.

**_I fear that the worse may come to pass._** Kurama's voice echoed softly in her mind. _You mean that was the side effects of the time-travel jutsu?_She asked. **_Possibly, usually it would not take effect until the first years pass. We will have to wait and see. Hopefully it was just your body forcing you to rest and recover from damage._** He sounded unsure, but it was the best he could give her.

"You should be more careful." Kakashi warned, bringing a small smile to her face.

"Are you sure you're alright now?" Minato checked, "I was planning on showing you my apartment yesterday, since that's where you'll be staying, but we never got a chance after you collapsed." She picked out the fact she had been unconscious for quite a few hours.

"I feel healthy enough." Miyu replied truthfully, "I think I was just tired."

"Either way, make sure you're aware of your own state." Rin scolded, "You shouldn't be so ignorant that you would collapse at random intervals." She was quite adamant about this thought and it reminded her of her deceased teammate. The occupants in the room sensed her shift in mood and looked worriedly down at the saddened girl. "I don't mean to be harsh, but take care of yourself." The medic finished.

"I apologize for troubling you all." Miyu responded politely.

"We were just worried." Minato waved off. "For now we should probably let you rest some more." He ushered himself and his students out, leaving the girl alone with her fox.

**_Maybe you should sleep some more?_** The demon fox suggested. The time-traveller nodded and sunk back beneath the sheets, wrinkling her nose at the slightly smell of antiseptic, before falling into an empty, dreamless rest.

* * *

**A/N **Once again thank you for reading!

I hope you all enjoyed the random flashback (which will become a regular thing), and Shika's appearance.

If you were wondering about Naru's skill levels, she was a sage like the canon, and now you know she was also an Anbu. The flashback would've been around when she was 17ish. Though now as a child you can say a lot of her skills have deteriorated...

Slowly we see Miyu being integrated into Konoha (ah titles are hard...this one was supposed to describe Konoha allowing her in...). Next up is the Academy and another familiar face...maybe two...

Anyway, drop a review if you can be bothered. Otherwise I'm just happy knowing the fic's been read~


	7. Adapt to Change

**A/N **How's it going?

We have another update here.

Really I don't understand why it takes me so long sometimes. I'm really just regurgitating the old fic with only a couple touch ups here and there...

Whelp, if you've read my old fic this chapter shouldn't be surprising. Its rather mundane actually.

But we get to start straight off with a flashback, Yay~

* * *

**~Chapter 3 - ADAPT TO CHANGE**

- - - - - _Dream_ - - - - -

Naru swung her legs idly back and forth as she sat on the edge of a cliff. There was a cool wind blowing through her shortened hair and the crashing sounds of the waterfall soothed her heart.

"I knew I'd find you here." A warm voice said as she heard footsteps behind her.

"Well, Kakashi-sensei, like you I'm doomed to spend hours wasting away in front of a stone." She waved over at the direction of a neatly made tombstone, which she had taken the time to painstakingly carve.

"At least I'm still in Konoha where people can find me." Her sensei gave a small greeting to his buried student.

"Hey! It's my day off anyway," Naru pouted, it's not like she could visit every day. Why did the Valley of the End have to be on the border of Fire country?

"Maa-maa, no need to get all feisty on me." He ruffled her hair, "Why did you have to cut it anyway?"

"It was stained with blood," She answered simply. Despite the fact it wasn't possible for blood to stain hair, and that it had been washed out long ago, she could always see the blood soaked strands whenever she looked at her reflection. Thus she had hacked it off, and her sunny blonde hair now only came up to her shoulders. She had already dealt with Ino and Sakura screaming about what a waste it was, making her promise to grow it out again.

"So," Kakashi began after a moment of peaceful silence, "What flowers did you bring him?" He had seen the gorgeous bouquet resting on the Uchiha's grave, wrapped in elegant black paper and a red ribbon.

"I got him some pink carnations, lots of cyclamens, a couple daffodils, geraniums, purple hyacinths, some random pansies, and some crimson roses. Ino wasn't at the shop today so her dad wrapped them up for me. Apparently he's working on a rose hybrid that would have been perfect, but they're taking a while to grow so they'll have to wait for next time." Kakashi hummed in thought as she listed off the flowers almost professionally.

"Maybe I'll bring something for him next time as well." He decided.

"The teme would probably like that. I know Sakura visits on her day off as well but she can't come often due to hospital work."

"It's understandable. Deaths aren't uncommon in our line of work so it's hard to find time to mourn properly." Kakashi said knowingly.

"Yeah, yeah." Naru wanted to stop him before he fully went into teacher mode. She stood up dusting off her jumpsuit and turning to face the taller male. "So what did you need me for?"

"Tsunade-sama wanted to see you. She said it was urgent." There was another silence with an added coy smile from the tale male.

"Then why didn't you tell me straight away!" Naru shouted at the laid-back man. "Unlike you I refuse to be three hours late to important appointments!" She quickly left the area via shunshin after a small wave towards the grave.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

Miyu blinked a couple of times, trying to get back to sleep. It didn't work seeing her biological clock had been waking her up at 4:00am for the past three years. There was an uncomfortable weight on her and she pushed it off, smiling as she heard a surprised yelp. With a discontent look the fox rolled back onto his feet and slapped her with his tail.

"Did you ever think that if you stopped sleeping on top of me, I'd stop pushing you off?" She suggested. Kurama merely gave her a look that said he wouldn't be stopping anytime soon. Looking out of the hospital window she could see the sun hadn't even risen yet and deduced no one would be checking on her anytime soon. Miyu sat up and crossed her legs preparing to meditate. It was better she found out where exactly her chakra levels were right now.

"Don't bother me." She told the fox as she settled into slow and steady breaths. She focused on her chakra which was significantly smaller than before and set about improving her circulation. She followed the flow around her body separating the large mass into something small enough to be counted as units. She could feel the nature's energy around her but avoided it for the moment, deciding that sage mode was a skill which should be saved for when she was better trained. Her chakra reserves were no longer as large as she remembered. They we're roughly the same as a newbie chuunin or a trained genin, something that did not bode well with her or her future plans. At least less chakra made it more manageable and her chakra control, no matter how bad it was before, hadn't lowered further.

**_It was already at the bottom so of course it could not get worse…_** The fox taunted. Her brow twitched in annoyance but she didn't retaliate.

"So, what should I get to doing first?" She asked. After entering the new timeline there was so much for her to do and she had no idea where to start. Speaking to the Hokage yesterday reminded her of the civil war in Amegakure where Pein would emerge from. If possible she would have to prevent that by somehow saving Konan and Nagato's friend.

**_They would be strong allies, especially the Rinnegan user._** The fox yipped approvingly.

"I don't know when the war is going to end so I should try and get to them as soon as possible, and I'm hardly strong enough to defeat their enemies." She looked at her weak limbs, "I heard that Danzo had a hand in this whole thing and sent over heaps of his Root agents. I'll be relying on you quite a bit and I know you haven't fully recovered either."

**_We will make do like always, thinking has never been your strong point so do not start now._** He teased.

"Baka-fox," she shoved him lightly before deciding she had spent enough time in bed, and hoped off. Miyu hardly made a sound when she landed, and tried to get a feel for her body. It was awkward at best, seeing as she thought her limbs were longer than they actually were.

**_Your taijutsu was not a strong point either, and truthfully you are bound to have gotten much worse._**

"I don't even want to think about it. I guess I should start conditioning my body? Should I start with weights?"

**_Better not Kit,_** Kurama answered,**_ your body is still growing at the moment. You may stunt your growth._**

"So what can I do?" She asked.

**_Stamina training, chakra exercises… feel free to use some resistance seals._**

"I don't have any ink or a brush." Miyu wouldn't mind putting the seals on now, since there wasn't anything better to do until someone realised she was awake. Judging by the fact the sun had not yet risen, that would be quite some time. The fox waved its tail around and pointed at her arm.

**_We will just have to use old fashioned methods and use your blood in place of ink. I will write it on for you. _**She nodded and searched the room for a small jar, found in one of the drawers, before biting her wrist and letting the blood flow out. She got a decent amount before her arm automatically healed up.

"Here ya go. You remember the seals I used to use right?"

**_Of course, who do you think I am?_** He yipped indignantly.

"The great Kyuubi no Kitsune, yeah, yeah." Miyu answered sarcastically, "Now come on, get it over with." He grumbled as much as a fox could and dipped the tip of his tail into her blood. In quick deft strokes he drew five identical seals, on the inside of each wrist, on her ankles and one on the back of her neck.

**_Done, now you just have to activate them._** He sat down and began cleaning his tail by licking the blood off.

"Does it even taste that good?" Miyu asked in curiosity.

**_As a matter of fact yes. You humans always cook your food so you would not understand the taste of fresh blood and flesh._** She just stared as he moved onto lapping the leftover blood, enjoying it like the carnivore he was.

"Right then," She pushed a small amount of chakra into each seal and tried to move around a bit. Nothing substantial yet, it just felt as if her movements were being hindered by the air itself. "Alright, there working now." The seal itself glowed dully and she waited for it to fade before rubbing the blood off, the resistance seals permanently in place."You need to get washed off…" Miyu said glancing at the fox whose muzzle had traces of blood. The jar itself though was sparkling clean.

**_How is your elemental control? _**Kurama asked. Miyu concentrated long and hard trying to conjure up some water but failed with only a slightly damp mist that made him sneeze.

"No good." She looked at her small hands in frustration, before sighing and shaking her head. "Well, let's go find a sink and get you washed up."

* * *

"You're awake!" Minato said surprised as he led his two students into the room.

"How are you feeling?" Rin asked pleasantly.

"Better. I think a good rest was all I needed." Miyu answered with a warm smile.

"You'll probably be discharged then. If the nurses say you're ok." Kakashi added. True to his words when her nurse came in to check on her she was declared fine and then out the doors within ten minutes.

"So, where's your fox?" The blond jounin questioned as they walked.

"Out hunting." Miyu replied.

"I hope he doesn't attack the Nara's deer." Minato worried, faltering in his step.

"He knows better, and he only eats wild animals." The fox's partner stated. In her timeline the Naras had taken a drastic and much needed measure, using their prized deer as provisions for the then homeless civilians and fighting ninja. The whole herd was gone in a month.

"So, we should probably go shopping today… you're going to need some new clothes." She couldn't go around just wearing the hospital-given civilian clothes. They'd have to get something more proper especially if she wanted to be a ninja.

"…I don't have any money." Miyu commented.

"We didn't expect you to." Rin responded, "That's why Minato-sensei will be paying for you."

"I couldn't-"

"It's a mission." Kakashi cut in. "The Hokage is practically giving us a break. We are assigned to take care of you and the money we receive after would be used to pay for any necessities and then some."

"Ah." Miyu smiled at the elderly Hokage. She would definitely have to repay him then. Before they had even realised it they had arrived at their main destination.

"Miyu, in here!" Minato led her over to a large clothing store and quickly went about browsing.

"Hey Rin," Kakashi turned to his teammate, "Don't you think those two look related somehow?" His eyes flicked between the jounin and soon to be academy student.

"Now that you mention it they do have a lot of similarities. I mean Minato-sensei's hair colour is quite unique in fire country and she has the exact same shade. The Yamanakas don't count since their hair is usually platinum blonde. They have similar facial structures as well, but I can't really tell since Miyu's still a kid." Rin seemed to be thinking pretty hard, "Their eye colours are also fairly alike, but Miyu's is a shade greener than blue." Both of Minato's students watched the cheerful interaction between the two blondes.

"It isn't completely unlikely for someone Sensei's age to have a young child…" Kakashi trailed off.

"I can go ask some of the nurses at the hospital if you want." Rin offered, "They have samples of her blood which we can compare to see if they're related." The boy nodded showing his approval. There was no way two people so similar wouldn't be related.

"Rin! Kakashi! Get over here!" their sensei called. Both students stopped their conversation and came over.

"What is it?" The medic asked.

"Doesn't she look adorable!?" He pointed over at Miyu who was dressed in an orange turtleneck and a pleated black skirt.

"That won't do at all!" Rin exclaimed quickly sifting through some other clothing racks. "She should wear something like this!" In a flash the girl had been changed into a cute orange summer dress. Kakashi eyed the glint of the silver rings around her neck, wondering why they looked so familiar. There was also a green gem hanging between them that reminded him of Tsunade's famous necklace.

"She wants to be a ninja so get her something practical," Kakashi sighed. He pulled out a pair of black pants and a matching top.

"Eh?" Minato and Rin cried, "But that's boring!"

"There's no orange…" Miyu muttered looking down at the black clothes in her hands. Despite how ill-fitting the colour was for a ninja she couldn't help but like it.

"Well we're definitely keeping the dress." Rin replaced the black top with the summer dress.

"I like this one!" Miyu pulled out an orange sleeveless hoodie that was trimmed with black.

"Then we'll get it," Minato decided adding a couple more of his own choices to the pile. "Uh, Rin… could I get you to find Miyu some…uh…undergarments?" The jounin requested.

"Of course!" Rin pulled the girl over to the back of the store and began sifting through different articles. "These should do for now." She said placing a mixture of orange, black and blue items in the girl's hands, "Though you'll have to come back here when you're older." Miyu nodded in understanding. They walked back to where the two males were waiting to pay and added the underwear to the pile. Miyu adopted a grudgingly accepting look when she couldn't pay, but before long they were all done, standing outside deciding what to do next.

"Oh shoot!" Rin exclaimed looking up at a clock on the shop wall, "I need to get to work!" She bid the group farewell and dashed off.

"Since we're done I'll be leaving too-" Kakashi turned to leave but a strong hand grabbed his shoulder, holding him back.

"Not so fast Kakashi~" Minato had an almost frightening smile on his face, "I need to pick up some groceries so while I'm gone, show Miyu around Konoha." The silver haired boy sighed, but agreed knowing there was no way for him to refuse.

* * *

"Where would you like to go?" The rather socially inept boy asked.

"Anywhere, should be fine." Miyu replied with a shrug. She had no idea how she should act in front of the younger Kakashi, and to make matters worse, she was alone since Kurama was still off hunting. The weather was fine, the sun shining down brightly on the two undecided kids. She fiddled with the chain around her neck, noticing it was different from the old ones that used to carry the matching rings, and wondered where the fox got it from.

"So, those rings are important to you?" Kakashi asked after a long silence.

"Yes," She replied softly her eyes full of various emotions, "They're very precious to me." The boy tried to identify her expressive eyes but only managed to pick out sadness before they were buried once again. They continued to walk until Kakashi suddenly stopped, and looked around nervously. "Are you okay?" Miyu asked, inwardly curious at seeing the panicked side of Kakashi.

"Shh!" He covered her mouth rather desperately, though he was trying to hide it. "He'll hear you." The blonde was completely confused and was tempted to shout just to find out who this person was. Turns out she didn't need to.

"KAKASHI!" Came a booming voice as some ran towards them. Whoever it was, they must've been running quite fast to create clouds of dust in their wake. "My eternal rival!" Kakashi swore under his breath cursing Minato for dragging him out of his apartment that morning. Miyu's eyes visibly widened as a green-spandex wearing teen with a bowl cut and defined eyebrows skidded to a stop in from of them. "I am here to offer my condolences!" The silver haired teen briefly wondered if he could shout any louder. Miyu assumed it was for Obito's death and came to realise how close she had been to saving the boy.

"Uh, thanks…" The boy answered awkwardly. It seemed this Kakashi hadn't found a way to deal with Gai yet. Miyu at least found his presence warming and comforting, something she missed when he was gone.

"No problem! It's the least I can do. I heard that your flames of youth have dimmed and came precisely to fan the fires back up to their former glory!" He ranted on passionately until finally taking notice of his rival's companion. "And who is this youthful looking miss? You must introduce me, my rival!"

"Ah, this is Uzunami Miyu." Kakashi replied. "She's new to Konoha."

"Mmf fu meef oo." Kakashi realised his hand still covered her mouth so he quickly removed it. "Nice to meet you." Miyu repeated.

"The pleasure is all mine!" Gai said in his usual loud voice, "I am Maito Gai, Konoha's sublime green beast and Hatake Kakashi's eternal rival!" Miyu wondered if she should also try to get a cool nickname this time around but quickly pushed the thought away. "That being said, Kakashi, I challenge you to a duel!"

"Sorry I must decline." Kakashi replied swiftly, "As you can see I am showing Miyu around Konoha."

"It's fine there are various ways to compete that would take little to none of your time!" He continued undeterred, "How about a game of wit? Or shall we test our luck again?" He just wouldn't take no for an answer.

"Um, could I suggest something?" Miyu asked quietly, Kakashi giving her a wary look, "It's a game that will test your mental endurance."

"What is it?" The Hatake asked.

"It's who can stay silent for the longest." He instantly perked up at the idea.

"How will this help?" Gai questioned, quite confused.

"What if you're on a mission and you need to be silent, sneaking through the shadows? Then you'll have to practice keeping quiet right?" Her logic was flawless.

"That is actually a very youthful idea. Kakashi let us both try this game! And, if I cannot defeat you I will run a hundred laps around Konoha…" The boy nodded in agreement as his self-proclaimed rival went off on another rant. "…And if I cannot do that I will climb the Hokage monument with only my fingertips-"

"I think we should begin." Kakashi hastily cut him off and awaited the peace that was sure to come.

* * *

**A/N **As always, thanks for reading :D

This time the flashback was a short moment between Naru and Kakashi, timed a couple of months after Sasuke's death.

Not a lot's happening right now but I aim to rectify that soon.

Anyway I hope you continue reading.


	8. Mission Start

**A/N** Hi again~

Just casually posting up another late chapter...

Anyway I hope to get another chapter posted up sometime soon for those who have read the original fic since this chapter remains virtually untouched.

Anyway, I really can't think of anything more to say right now so Happy Reading to you all :)

* * *

**~Chapter 4 - MISSION START**

"Welcome back you two!" Minato quickly ushered in his student and his newest charge. "Kakashi you'll be staying for dinner today~" Once again his student was unable to decline and thus found himself sitting comfortably on the couch. Miyu was idly twirling her long hair, wondering why Kurama still hadn't returned. Contrary to popular belief, neither of the ramen loving blondes exclusively ate the delicious noodles. After all, it was important for a ninja to get enough nutrition in their diet. That's why today, Minato was standing over the stove in an apron, making a curry of some sort. "So did you have fun Miyu?"

"Mmhm, I made a very youthful friend and he's going to help me with taijutsu… as soon as he finishes his laps!" Of course Gai had lost the mentally 'challenging' game, and apparently the score was 51-49 in Kakashi's favour.

"Kakashi, you didn't…" The blonde jounin uttered in disbelief. His student put his hands up defensively,

"It's not like I was expecting him to be looking for me, and no matter what you can't really avoid him…" He curled up depressingly.

"I like him!" Miyu decided to add, "He seems like a good person,"

"Gai is a good boy," Minato agreed, "But he is slightly eccentric." Both males were surprised that she didn't mind the spandex-wearing teen where most would be running in fear.

"But he's interesting! And very… youthful!" She smiled brightly. Even if this wasn't her correct time, and even if nobody knew her, it was always nice to see a familiar face. A soft thumping sounded at the door, jolting her from her thoughts while Kakashi got up to answer it.

"Gah!"

"What is it?!" Minato wondered what could have frightened the stoic teen. He walked around Kakashi and opened the door only to come face to face with a tiger's maw.

"Ahhh!"

"Kurama!" Miyu ran to the door and by now Kakashi and Minato realised that the tiger wasn't even alive anymore. Looking closer Minato saw it had been eaten rather neatly and carried back by the fox.

**_I brought back a gift kit~_** He was in a good mood after a very successful hunt.

"Since when could foxes take down tigers? Especially one as big as this, it looks like one of the overgrown animals in the Forest of Death." Kakashi mused.

**_That's because it is._** The fix yipped back. Through the carcass was several times his own size he had no trouble lugging it through the village, unnoticed as well.

"Kurama is strong." Miyu commented.

"Strong? In what way?" Minato asked curiously.

"He can fight." The girl said proudly.

"Ah," Kakashi uttered, "But still, to take down this tiger…"

"Ku likes eating other carnivores," Miyu as if it clarified things, "they taste better and he likes the thrill of battle."

"Really now?" Minato wondered, "Well come on in, we can't have the neighbours notice and start worrying." He helped to drag the ridiculously large remains onto his kitchen floor where it just stayed for lack of anywhere better to go. "Until this is clean we are definitely not placing it anywhere near the carpet." He waved a ladle around threateningly, and both Miyu and Kurama nodded in reply, ever so slightly afraid of the blond in the frilly pink apron though they would never freely admit it.

* * *

After dinner, Kakashi left for his own apartment and Miyu went to bed exhausted. Today was just too tiring for her younger, untrained body. She would probably have to do monstrous amounts of training if she hoped to protect anyone. **_Goodnight kit,_** Kurama conveyed.

"Goodnight to you too." She yawned tiredly and slipped under the covers.

- - - - - _Dream_ - - - - -

"Shh!" Her companion hushed her as they stalked their target, hidden stealthily in the bushes. Naru nodded tensely and waited for the signal. The man counted down on his fingers before rapidly making a series of hand signs. Out of the bushes jumped a white blur, fiercely attacking the target and she was given the signal.

"Now!" The man shouted, readying his kunai. The white blur was flung off but it had given her enough time to catch her target. She struggled slightly to keep its maw shut long enough for her companion to finish it off She heard the quick slash and the spray of blood, sighing in relief as its thrashing lessened before it finally died. She stepped back, marvelling at the white tiger that had died, the slit in its neck, staining its fur crimson.

"Haa, that was nerve wracking." Naru wiped the sweat from her forehead.

"You did good." The man complimented, "Usually it's a lot harder with only me and Akamaru." He gave a short bark and the white blur returned, showing and extremely large dog.

"Kiba, remind me why we're doing this again." The girl sighed.

"The forest of death is a pretty big food source as well, and we need provisions." The Inuzuka shrugged.

"I don't think they would appreciate eating tiger though." He waved off her worries.

"Like they'll ever have to know. Meat is meat." His partner barked in agreement.

"But this will last us for a while." She was slightly relieved, it's not like they had any other choice. Food was beginning to get scarce, there was no time to get picky.

"I know right." Kiba smiled cheerfully, "Now come here, I'll show you how to skin it." While Akamaru busied himself chasing colourful butterflies, Kiba guided her hand, giving her hints here and there about what to do.

"It' feels really weird." She commented pulling her hand out to see it covered in blood.

"You'll get used to it." He looked at the tiger's hide and gave her a thumbs up, "Not bad for a first timer."

"Thanks." She wiped off her dirty kunai and began helping him remove the meat from the bones. "So what do we do with the guts?"

"Leave it out for the scavengers." He smirked ferally, "We should fatten them up in case we run out of tigers." She shook her head in defeat, but couldn't deny his logic. Akamaru came back for a rather large femur, while he owner searched around on the forest floor.

"What are you looking for?" Naru asked curiously.

"Ah, Shino said he was searching for a rare bug in this forest before and he couldn't find it." He answered, "I was going to see if I could find it. I already have the general description."

"You two get along well." She told him truthfully.

"Nah," The dog-boy blushed, "In the beginning we fought all the time, though Hinata would always bring us back together."

"That was years ago." Naru pointed out.

"Hahahh, I guess you're right." Kiba accepted, "Shino's just a pretty cool guy. It was only after we both threw our pride away that I started to understand him. I think it was on a mission just after we got chuunin."

"I'm just glad you stopped annoying Hinata with your ridiculous fights." Naru pulled out her sealing equipment to safely store the meat.

"Yeah," He thought back fondly, "Now come on, hurry up! I'll race you back. I bet Kakashi's moping around being all lonely without you."

"He's a grown man." She hit him playfully with more power than she intended and sent him sprawling.

"Ow! That freakin' hurt!" He growled picking himself up.

"Ah, sorry about that," She laughed, "I've been training with Sakura lately." Now Kiba was the one moping around, rubbing his bruised nose.

"Well, come on. It's a race right?" Naru agreed trying to get his spirits back up. It worked and he was excited all over again.

"Yes! I swear this time I'll beat you. Let's get going Akamaru!" He and his ninken dashed off without any more warning.

"Well that was sudden." She blinked a couple of times before a smirk stretched across her face and disappeared in a flash of yellow.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

_More dreams…_Naru slowly got up and stretched her arms up. Hearing a satisfying crack she let them fall back to the sides before padding to the kitchen. Kurama was still sleeping on her bed so she let while she got to work, eyeing the dead beast on the floor. Fingering a kitchen knife she got to work, skinning the tiger with practised ease. She sealed the skin away to wash later on and began removing flesh, soon all the was left were a couple of bones which she could probably give Kakashi the next time he came… or maybe even make a trip to the Inuzuka. She cursed having to stand on her tip-toes to clean up the area before opening several drawers and the fridge. She pulled out a small amount of ingredients and chucked them in a pot with the remaining tiger meat, listening to the satisfying sizzle.

* * *

That day Minato smelled stew when he woke up, and followed his nose to the kitchen. "Miyu? What are making?"

"Stew!" She pulled out a pair of bowls and gave each of them a generous amount.

"It smells great." The older blonde said in appreciation.

"I hope it tastes alright." Miyu tried some herself and smiled at the nostalgic taste.

"It tastes better than it smells." Minato said after his first bite. He looked towards his kitchen which had been cleaned up nicely when a thought hit him. "Hm? Where did the tiger go?" Miyu continued eating, watching as the fox finally trudged out only to fall back asleep on her lap.

"I cleaned up, since it was Kurama brought in the mess anyway." She answered. He was thankful but ultimately still curious.

"But that thing was huge, where did you put it?" It sure as hell wouldn't fit in the dumpster around the corner. He didn't even know if she would be able to move the thing.

"Well I skinned it and I still have the bones with me…"

"But what happened to the rest of it?"

"…" She stared pointedly at her bowl which was almost empty.

"…you put it in the stew didn't you…?" She nodded and watched as he stared impassively at his meal. He contemplated for a long while before shrugging and polishing his bowl off. "Well it tastes fine and in the end meat is meat…" He looked back towards the pot, "Do you mind if I give some to my students?"

"No, that's fine." In fact she was happy he wanted to share, ignoring the mischievous glint in his eyes. "Do you think you can give the bones to the Inuzuka?"

"Sure, I think their ninken will be happy. Where did you put them?" Miyu pulled out a scroll and handed it to him, "A sealing scroll. No, it seems a little different." Being the seal master he was, Minato couldn't help but analyse the pattern, "A preservation seal? Where did you find this?" Miyu nudged the fox awake and put him on the table.

"He likes to horde things in his fur." She stated.

**_I do not horde, I collect,_** He corrected, **_and the items are for you anyway. _**She nudged him and he searched his fluffy neck for another scroll. He was lucky and tossed the object to the jounin.

"But where did it get the scrolls from." The demon yipped an answer while Miyu translated.

"He said there were dead people in the forest so he took some of their belongings." Minato nodded in acceptance seeing as ninja frequently died in the forest of death, pushing the fact she could understand the fox aside for now. "So you know how to activate the scrolls then?"

"Yep, you just push in a bit of chakra." It was a quite a simple thing, used regularly to store food.

"I might take some for Hokage-sama as well. I'll be seeing him later on today about your enrollment." Minato stated. "Since there's really nothing for you to do at the moment why don't you familiarize yourself with Konoha? Take your time and explore the village. I trust you won't get lost."

"Alright." The girl said happy enough to go with his plans.

* * *

**_Kit I think we should start on that mission,_** Kurama advised as the two slowly wandered into the forest, away from prying eyes.

"I agree." Her eyes narrowed as she scanned her surroundings for anything dubious before putting her hands together, crossing over her index and middle fingers. A soft poof, as well as pink smoke accompanied a completely identical clone. "Quick, turn around." She commanded. The replica did as told, also holding up its hair so its neck was visible. Miyu quickly drew a seal in blood and activated it, feeling a large chunk of her chakra disappear.

**_Now that is done we need to get moving._** The fox urged.

"You know what to do right?" She asked her clone.

"Of course boss!" It responded.

"Good, take care all right." Miyu disappeared into the undergrowth with the fox while the clone walked back onto the street as if nothing had happened.

"How much of your power have you restored?" Miyu asked her companion as the dashed through the forest, hurry out of Fire country.

**_Around 60%,_** came the fox's reply. The girl sighed.

"It'll have to do." She held up her left hand in the tiger seal, "Restriction level 1 release." The fox grew bigger, about to the size of a large horse, and had another tail added on.

**_I feel stronger already. _**He stretched his muscles and pawed the ground, before nudging the girl onto his back. **_I hate having humans on me but you are an exception…_**

"I love you too Kurama-chan." Miyu said scratching behind his ears pleasantly. The fox let out a low whine and shivered with pleasure.

**_Kit, kit… stop, we need to get going…_** He was reluctant but at least knew they had more important things to be doing.

"You're right," The blonde admitted, "Let's see now… Kagehenge!" A poof of pink gas surrounded her and when it dissipated she was in her nineteen year-old body and her old Anbu uniform, her hair tied up in a high ponytail with a silver ribbon.

**_You are not going to mask your face?_** Kurama asked as he ran.

"No, I'll let them see me and maybe they will find a connection with my younger body if we ever meet again. I also know people don't usually trust masks, it can be unnerving." The fox gave a curt nod, accepting her reason. "But we should hurry, I don't know the exact timeline, so for all we know we could be too late. I hope we get there in time." Miyu prayed, leaning into the fox's fur.

**_If you are that worried why do you not teleport us there then?_** He replied in her mind, **_you did not actually forget about it…right?_**

"…of course not." The time traveller said unconvincingly. "I was planning to … save my strength for the battle."

**_I will be the one doing most of the work so feel free to use it. It is probably better that way, after all the run to Ame might wear me down. _**She listened to the fox's advice, directing her chakra to her eyes. Blue bled into red as her Sharingan was pushed past the first level and the three black tomoes swirled into a new pattern. Hey chakra surged and the area around her distorted before they both vanished from view.

* * *

"Ah! Shit!" Miyu cursed, trying to keep her presence low as she literally free fell through the air, still on the back of the enlarged fox.

**_You know what kit,_** the fox did the animal equivalent of a sigh, **_we would never have gotten in this sort of situation if you had practised your Sharingan more!_** He certainly didn't like the idea of falling several hundred metres onto rocky grounds.

"Shut up! And stop complaining!" She growled back. He should know full well by now that she hated using 'her' Sharingan. "Anyway we need a plan, quick!" Looking down she could see two tiny dots, probably Nagato and… was it Yahiko? While on top of a cliff facing them was Hanzo the Salamander, holding Konan hostage, with a sea of ninja behind him.

**_So, have you got anything?_** Kurama asked quickly, not wanting to ruin the element of surprise that they had. Miyu shrugged, hardly reassuring him.

"I'll release some more of your power and you'll fall into the middle of the army and take out as many ninja as possible. Meanwhile I'll free Konan and take on Hanzo. If they have any sense in them Yahiko and Nagato will join the fight soon enough."

**_So basically charge in and wreak havoc?_** The fox simplified with an eager grin.

"Exactly." She grinned back, "Restriction level 4, release!" Kurama felt a surge as a large amount of his power returned. His body grew again, several times his current size, and an added three tails sprouted.

**_This is what I am talking about!_** He let out a deafening roar and she released her hold. Being much bigger than before, he of course fell much faster, landing in the midst of surprised and frightened ninja.

"What the hell!"

"Gah!"

**_Roar~_** Kurama thought while preforming another devastating wail.

"Shit! Get outta the way!"

"Where the fuck did the giant fox come from?!"

"Just get out of the way!"

"Someone explain what the fuck is going on!" Hanzo shouted, glaring at the fox that was panicking his well-organized army. Many of his soldiers had already fallen, and at the rate the feral animal was attacking, things were just getting started.

"Isn't it obvious?" came a serene voice from behind. He quickly turned his body back, flicking out a kunai towards the speaker. "Oya, oya, you should watch were you're throwing."

"Who the hell are you?" He growled out at the new arrival. The, frankly stunning, blonde kunoichi stared back with a hint of mischievousness in her eyes. Eyes which held the Sharingan, and no ordinary one at that. He hissed with dissatisfaction.

"I wonder," She put a finger to her chin in thought and he suddenly noticed the loss of his hostage who was now unconscious in her arms, "I really don't have a good answer to that question right now."

"What are you talking about? Who are you and what are you doing here?! And where the hell did the fox come from?!" Kurama was naturally doing a great job. He easily repelled any kunai or shuriken with his tails, though they wouldn't do much damaged regardless, and fired back with his own torrents of flames. She could hear the screams as well as the splatter of blood and had no doubt in mind that he was enjoying it.

"For now let's just say I'm a vagrant shinobi here to save the damsel in distress." She carelessly threw the blue haired woman over the cliff and out of the way, sure that her friends would come to catch her. "And didn't you see? The fox and I fell from the sky."

"Argh! I don't have time for this you ignorant child!" He watched as his only hostage disappeared from view, "Die! And get out of my way! Kuchiyose no Jutsu – Ibuse!" A large dark brown salamander appeared underneath him, hissing and growling at his next opponent.

"You live up to your name Salamander~" Miyu taunted. She inwardly hoped that he wasn't the type to get stronger when angry, otherwise she would have no chance defeating the man who had overpowered the Sannins.

"Ibuse, Dokugiri!" Hanzo commanded. The quicker he got rid of the nuisance the sooner Amegakure would be under his control. The giant salamander exhaled a toxic purple gas that would almost instantly paralyze its victims. _Get out of there Kurama, _Miyu projected,_ I'm about to knock out his army._

"Fuuton – Daitoppa!" With about double the normal amount of needed chakra she blew out a gust of air, sweeping past the poisonous cloud and sending it back. Of course Hanzo and his summon were not affected but the same couldn't be said about the ninja behind him. She'd have to thank his anger that he had momentarily forgotten his surroundings, focusing all of his attention on her.

**_I was having fun though… _**Kurama whined as he appeared beside her. He was already much bigger than Hanzo's salamander and frankly had the advantage.

"Get rid of Ibuse for me," Miyu ordered, "If it takes enough damage it'll return back to the summons realm."

**_I would be glad to. I have never been one for amphibians anyway._** The snarled intimidatingly at the salamander, baring his teeth and clawing the ground.

"I'm going to need some time, so until then don't let them touch me!" She was confident that the Kyuubi no Kitsune, even in his weakened form would be able to hold Hanzo off. Meanwhile she poured all her concentration into focusing her chakra into her right hand. Bright sparks shot off it but nothing substantial yet. The fox held its breath and dashed in, swiping at the summon and aiming to spear it with one of its tails. Hanzo fended the tails off diligently with the blade of a sickle-like weapon while the amphibian dodged with surprising agility,

**_Stand still would you?_** Kurama growled out in irritation. He would probably need to breathe soon and didn't want to stand next to the poisonous creature any longer. The next time it breathed out the gas would be its last.

"Again!" Hanzo commanded after the five minutes he needed were up, "Dokugiri!"

**_Perfect. _**His voice resounded with smug satisfaction. The fox arched his back before rearing back and shooting a large fireball into the fray. The cloud of poison ignited and Hanzo was thrown off his mount which was now writhing and screeching as it burned. The fox laughed wildly in yips and yowls as the fires brushed harmlessly across its fur. **_That'll teach you to go up against me! The great Kyuubi no Kitsune!_** Miyu ignored his gloating as her preparation were finished and stared into the explosion's smoke for her target. Her Sharingan easily found him around some rubble, kneeling and possibly badly injured. She lowered her stance slightly before dashing forward, her arm covered in blue electricity, shaping it like a blade. She wouldn't give him a chance to recover or escape, happy enough that the explosion trick had caught him.

* * *

**A/N **Thanks for reading :D

I hope you enjoyed the Kiba/Naru dream. This would have been during the war, near the beginning, before things started going bad. Naru is out of Anbu here and Kiba is about the level of an Anbu recruit. You can imagine most of the Konoha 11 aroung this level as well.

The dreams will continue and I hope to show you a lot of moments between Naru and her friends. I'll also try to relate them with the story. This time it had to do with tigers, more specifically ones from the Forest of Death.

I guess the current timeline of flashbacks would be Kakashi - Shika - Kiba.

It will take a while, since I'm still getting the story line set but after there will be time skips where she's older, something to look forward to!

And now we have the Rescue the Ame Trio mission operation.

Once again thank-you for reading, please review, and I'll try to update soon :D


	9. Phase One: Complete

**A/N** Yoho~

New chapter... BAM

Woo for the small bits of action :D

Anyway, please have fun reading.

* * *

**~Chapter 5 - PHASE ONE: COMPLETE**

"Gahk!" Hanzo didn't know where he had gone wrong. Everything had been planned out perfectly. He had a hostage and within moments he would've have been the sole ruler of Amegakure. If only that blonde wretch hadn't appeared, literally out of nowhere, with her bastard of a fox, and begun to ruin his perfect scheme. Instead he had watched as the monster destroyed his personal army, though half of the men were Danzo's Root which war hawk had happily lent. He shouldn't have gone down so easily, Hanzo reasoned with himself. If only he hadn't fallen for her taunting and collected himself enough to form a counterattack, even a retreat would have been better.

He was Hanzo of the Salamander, who had beaten the three legendary Sannin and had named them thus, how could he have fallen at the hands of this weak girl? Thin yet muscled arms, a flexible wrist and delicate fingers, all currently stabbed through his chest and most importantly, his heart.

"Raiton – Raikiri." Miyu whispered as the man slumped over. She withdrew her hand, not even blinking at the slick sounds and chunks of flesh that came with it, before letting him fall onto the floor. Looking carefully, a good half his body had already been burnt beyond recognition with little chance of ever being used again, and his mask had cracked in several places. She grabbed the chain beside her and pulled until the sickle end came into view, noting that the blade had also been poisoned.

**_Kit, I'm going to have to refill my energy reserves,_** She heard Kurama think somewhere in the distance,**_ I'll be having lunch right now, if you don't mind. _**_That's fine, _she replied, _but leave the ones that are still alive._ She heard him give the mental equivalent of a nod before stalking off.

"Now, back to business." She held the blade to the dead man's throat before cutting cleanly through it, only struggling when she hit the spine. Preforming the necessary procedure she sealed Hanzo's head into a scroll, scavenging any remaining equipment with a wry smile, before leaving to find her next targets. She found all three by the bottom of the cliff, oblivious to the whole fight which had just ended. "Good evening." Miyu greeted, appearing next to them in a swirl of leaves. Instantly the two males were on red alert, Yahiko jumping up to defend, while Nagato protected the unconscious Konan.

"Who are you?" the de facto leader asked while holding up a kunai.

"Miyu." The blonde answered truthfully. If they ever did find her while she was in Konoha… well she would deal with it then, "But putting the questions aside for now, I think you would want your teammate awake." She clapped her hand twice and released a pulse of chakra, "Kai."

"Ngh?" Konan stirred before pushing herself up and blinking sleepily.

"Konan!" Her teammates exhaled in relief, happy she hadn't been harmed.

"Now all three of you are awake I'd personally like to congratulate you on your new leadership." She said with a small smile. It would help a lot if they weren't as hostile towards her since she didn't know if she could continue to battle. That being said she deactivated her eyes which had slowly but surely been draining away the lasts of her energy. "So Konan-san, I hope you're feeling ok."

"…Yes." The blue haired woman gave Miyu a curious glance, as wary as her teammates but grateful nonetheless, "…thank you very much for saving all of us."

"Do you know her?" Yahiko asked, surprised she was being so 'friendly'.

"No, this is also my first time meeting her." The woman replied monotonously. The group lapsed into a tense silence.

"Not that we are ungrateful," Yahiko worded his sentence carefully, to not offend the possible ally or enemy, "But, why did you…help us?"

"Theirs is something I wanted to discuss with Amegakure's leaders, but seeing as it was in the midst of a civil war I had the pleasure of choosing which side I would help. Whether you accept or not, I would rather you three in power than Hanzo either way." The blonde answered.

"Then what was it you wanted to discuss?" Nagato inquired. He felt unusually calmed, but rationalized against the feeling. He would remain on guard for as long as she had a chance of being a threat.

"The possible alliance between Ame and Konoha." Miyu answered bluntly.

"What! Are you out of your mind?" Yahiko exclaimed, "Didn't you see? Half of that army was from Konoha. Hell, the reason Ame is so bad off is because the previous war we had with Konohagakure!"

"Maa maa, let's calm down," She put her hands up in defence, "Putting the war aside, Konoha never sided with Hanzo. Shimura Danzo did. And I was here to fix that wasn't I?"

"So then you're a Konoha kunoichi." Konan deduced.

"I am," The absence of a hitai-ate made it hard for her to seem truthful.

"How do we know this isn't some ploy to get Ame under Konoha's control?" The red-haired male questioned doubtfully.

"If that was what I wanted I would have allowed Hanzo's victory." She answered, "After all, I'm sure that was what Danzo was planning."

"Then how would it be any different if we agree." Yahiko responded with distaste.

"Do you enjoy undervaluing yourself?" Miyu asked with a frown, "I find it hard that you think so little of your own skills that you'll fall under any influence. You even have the added warning. If you don't want to do something, then don't. You're not as easy to manipulate as Hanzo, believe in yourself a little."

"…" Yahiko stayed silent for lack of anything to say, "You…you really have some high opinions of us." He commented after a hesitation.

"Of course." Miyu stated.

"I don't think an alliance would be such a bad thing." Konan decided tentatively, trying to explain her reasoning to her shocked teammates, "Well, it's almost certain Konoha will agree, judging by her confidence, and if we're allies we will not have to face each other. I've heard enough rumours of Konoha's Yellow Flash and of some clans like the Hyuga and Uchiha to know we will not win another confrontation." She explained. Konan dutifully left out the three Sannin who ruled a large part of their minds regardless.

"How do you know Konoha will agree to this?" Yahiko asked, turning his attention back to the blonde, "From what I gather we're the ones who will be proposing this alliance. I assume the Hokage has no idea of it?" Miyu nodded.

"You're correct, but I can be certain because Konoha has nothing to lose here. You are aware of the Third Shinobi War between Konohagakure and Iwagakure, right? " She waited for their nods before continuing, "Well during this time of need Konoha will want all the allies it can get."

"Why would we be foolish enough to ally with them in a war?" Nagato questioned, "Ame doesn't have enough shinobi to spare against the likes of Suna and Iwa."

"You won't need to worry about that," She clarified, "I will provide them."

"How?" Yahiko wondered how this girl could easily get at least a hundred ninja ready in time.

"We have at least half an army of decent, already trained ninja, up on that cliff," The blonde shrugged as if it was no big deal, "I can fix their loyalties as well, which means you'll be able to keep some Root members and I assure you they are as strong as ordinary Anbu."

"How are you going to 'fix' their loyalties?" Nagato asked sceptically.

"I can put a seal on their bodies or hypnotize them with the Sharingan. Either way works."

"Then how do we know you haven't hypnotized Konan?" he challenged.

"You don't." She said seriously, "I didn't have to go through the trouble of saving her either, but I thought you'd appreciate it." It was the truth since she couldn't afford to expend any unnecessary energy.

"We do, so thank you for that." Yahiko spoke sincerely before grabbing his friend's attention, "And look Nagato, she doesn't look like she's under any influence." They both took a long while to stare at the rather stoic girl.

"I'm fine." The bluenette reassured.

**_Kit, I'm done. _**The demon stood atop the cliff, looking down at the four humans, **_what now?_** _Come down here and I'll introduce you. _He nodded and the fox nimble scaled the cliff edge, landing next to the group, his already red fur glistening with blood.

"Wha- A fox?!" Yahiko stepped away from the feral looking animal.

"This is my partner Kurama." Miyu introduced, "Don't worry, he would never attack a comrade." The three Ame shinobi heard the hidden warning in her words.

"This alliance," Yahiko began after an apprehensive silence, "Could we have time to think it over?"

"Three days," Miyu gave, "That's how long it will take to convert these ninja's and that is also roughly how long I'll be able to stay." He thought it over before nodding rather reluctantly.

* * *

Miyu whistled a cheery tune, lazily holding a crimson umbrella over her shoulder, while her free hand threw and caught a hefty bag of ryo, received from hunting down and turning in several small bounties in her free time. Beside her Nagato walked silently, with his own matching umbrella deflecting the light droplets of rain. Kurama was silent as he padded beside them in his shrunken form. The rain never proved a problem for the furred beast as his fur naturally remained warm and dry.

"…Do you mind if I ask you why you helped us?" The man finally asked, the question bothering him since her first appearance.

"What do you mean? Didn't I tell you guys before?" The blonde skipped on the spot, turning to face him in the middle of the desolate street. "I want an alliance with Ame for Konoha."

"I understand that," The redhead replied, "But why? We don't particularly have anything to offer. In fact you're the one providing the majority of the shinobi forces we will employ. What is your motive? Is there someone else you're working for?" He was troubled enough to show a deep frown which creased his otherwise young face.

"It's nothing as complex as that." Miyu waved off. She sent him a weary smile, and for the first time Nagato found something recognizable in her masked expression. "At one point it would have been my dream to unite the Elemental nations," She began wistfully, "No more wars, no massacres, genocides or manhunts."

"Then what changed?" He probed. It was a similar ideology the bound himself, Yahiko and Konan together.

"That was childish, don't you think? People are creatures of habit. We're greedy, prideful, all around sinful, and we're always getting into fights. We…can't help but hurt one another." Her companion nodded along thoughtfully, "I don't care, so much, for that anymore. Wars will continue to rage and good ninja will continue to die. As long as I can protect those precious to me I can be content. That is all I want."

"So?" His question remained unanswered.

"You may not believe it right now, but I count you three as one of my precious people," Miyu let out a smiled that lit up the dim surroundings.

"Why?" His brow lowered in concentration, "I don't believe any of us have ever met you before." He hadn't realised he had been watching her so intently until she twirled the umbrella in her hand, startling him with the spray of water. From there it was as if he had woken from a daze.

"Just a feeling then?" She answered vaguely, "Even though I said I'd be content with just being able to protect those dear to me, I do want to help others. Innocent lives shouldn't be lost, wars shouldn't even begin. I know with you three, that maybe a fourth war could be prevented." Nagato didn't comment on the fact that they were still in the midst of the Third Great Shinobi War. He let his mind linger on what had been said as they continued to walk back to the inn she currently stayed at.

"…You know," He began as his mind decided on an unrelated topic, "I've never heard of a blue-eyed Uchiha before…"

* * *

"So your answer?" Miyu asked, tilting her head to the side. These past few days they had been quite hospitable, providing adequate accommodation as well as a guide. Slowly but surely she had worked her way through Hanzo's leftover army, changing their allegiances to Ame's three new leaders. It wasn't that hard to convince them, after all with Hanzo dead what else could they do? The Root ninja's were a bit harder to work with. Their lack of emotions was hard for her to handle while manually taking off each of Danzo's seals took its toll. She was convinced they would follow Yahiko, Nagato and Konan simply because they didn't know how to do anything else.

"Here's a scroll with a request for an alliance," Yahiko tossed the document towards her which Kurama caught from his place on her shoulders. He was much less intimidating in his smaller form and apparently Konan was quite taken with him this way.

"Thanks, I promise you won't regret it." She nodded slightly in acknowledgement, "Konoha cherishes its allies, and if peace is what you're searching for, this is one step in the right direction."

"Yes, by helping in a war." He added rather sarcastically.

"It will end soon enough, probably within the next couple of months. You won't have to do much at all."

"I'll have to take your word for it." He eyed her sceptically but wouldn't argue. "Is it strange that sometimes I see you as an angel that fell from the sky to help us?" He chuckled faintly, "Though considering you destroyed an army and came along with a monster I should probably think of you as the angel of death." He shook his head to remove the ridiculous thought. "Nagato's a good judge of people, so if he believes you are somewhat trustworthy I'll have to as well. Konan doesn't seem to mind either, in fact she seems more at peace these days."

"I feel honoured." Miyu replied with a smile. It was nice to finally know what kind of guy Yahiko was and the same went for the two others who hadn't lost their friend. "If you ever come to Konoha I'll have to treat you to my famous stew, though you'll definitely be in store for a few surprises."

**_I'll enjoy hunting for you,_** Kurama purred drowsily. Miyu didn't blame him, knowing the reason for his tiredness, as she had him running all over Ame during their stay.

"Maybe I will, after I finish those." He pointed to the corner of the room where he had shoved stacks of growing papers. It looked like all leaders were doomed by the same curse.

"On a note of goodwill why don't I tell you a secret?" She leant in close to whisper into his ears. "Kagebushin."

* * *

Likewise when she met Sarutobi, disguised as an ambassador from Ame, she couldn't help but want to tell him the secret as well. And maybe she would… after he retired.

"So, Amegakure wishes for an alliance?" The Hokage asked, slightly astonished, as she handed him the scroll.

"Yes, we thought we could offer our help during the war. And better yet as comrades we would avoid conflict with each other." Miyu answered in the deep voice of a male.

"Hm." He read over it carefully, "I will think on it, but until then feel free to return to Ame. We will send our own envoy with the reply."

"Thank you." She bowed courteously before walking out the door. Now the next thing she would have to do is find her clone, which the fox should have tracked down by now.

**_Training ground 7 kit,_** he sent, right on time. Nodding to herself she meandered through the streets, slowly changing her disguise while in the crowd. First the headband became a similarly coloured bandana, then the flak jacket turned into a darker shaded vest, the pants were swapped for a coarser and cheaper pair and even her face changed to match her now civilian outlook. Stepping out she looked like an ordinary face you would never pay attention to. She dulled her presence and crept silently through the bushes near the appointed training ground. From her vantage point it looked like her clone was idly watching Minato train his students. Kurama was sitting beside her mindlessly scratching his ear with his hind leg. _If only the other tailed beasts could see you now._ She mocked, alerting him of her presence. He froze in response for a moment before giving a couple more satisfying scratches.

**_They would merely be jealous that I am, once again, free._** He waited until Team Minato was sufficiently distracted before nosing her clone over to the bushes. A small poof of smoke and a couple of hand seals later she was back in her original form, filtering through her newly gained memories.

"Did you know that apparently training with Gai begins tomorrow? He seemed to have finished his laps already…" Her eyebrow quirked up in amusement, "While doing at least half of them on his hands..."

**_Your clone already told me. The academy will also be starting in a couple of days. Sarutobi has graciously placed you in the graduating class, most likely to see where your skill levels truly lie._** While he spoke Miyu nodded along. His words corresponded with her apparent memories.

"I'm excited." She admitted with a sparkle in her eyes.

"Miyu!" Minato called, "What are you doing over in the bushes?"

"Nothing!" Miyu answered, skipping back to the group in time to see his rather harsh training. She slowed as she neared seeing the blonde jounin standing with one foot on each student's back as they did push-ups. It was quite comical too see him rise and sink as his students worked.

"Sensei… can we stop now?" Rin huffed falling behind. Kakashi seemed to rise a bit too fast for her which meant she ended up with the brunt of her teacher's weight.

"I was waiting for you to ask. You finished the required number a while back." Kakashi groaned at the revelation, while Minato smirked uncharacteristically.

**_I never knew the blonde idiot to be such a sadist. _**Kurama confessed with his partner nodding in agreement.

"I figured out a while back all senseis are somewhat strange." She muttered back.

"Would you like to join in?" The older jounin asked good-naturedly. Rin would have sent him an troubled look for suggesting such a thing, if only she weren't so tired.

"What should I do?" Miyu bounced on the balls of her feet, feeling strangely energized.

"Well, what can you do?" Minato cocked his head to the side in thought. "How about tree climbing?"

"I can do that." The younger girl answered confidently.

"Can you show us?" Kakashi pitched in, indicating to a moderately sized trunk. Miyu stared up and the tree, and began a slow run. She instantly felt something off when her left foot first touched the bark, letting out a soft sound she pressed onwards, and adjusted herself while she climbed. From where she sat on the branch and the team saw from the ground, her progress was obvious. This first footfall was too light, she seemed to have slipped, the second leaving a large dent in the broken bark, and then the rest slowly smoothing out as she regulated her chakra properly.

**_Horrendous,_** Kurama commented with a snort,**_ your control's all over the place._** Miyu ignored him and made the effort to walk down, this time the bark remained unmarred. To her audience it was obvious that she had regained the feel of her own body.

"…Good job." Minato praised, "I just hope that doesn't happen every time." He looked over at the deepest indentation which went through a good half of the tree.

"I should be alright from now." She replied, shaking out her legs, "My chakra just surprised me."

"How so?" Kakashi asked.

"The amount seemed a bit off." Miyu remained unease at her lowered capacity.

"I guess it can't be helped." Minato shrugged, "I was planning on doing some chakra training later on. You should join us, it will definitely help."

* * *

**A/N** Thanks for reading :D

To Ame and back! A brief trip in which important people were saved. You can bet the Ame trio will be coming into the story a lot later.

Forgot to put this in last time but, new Jutsu (Not really though...)

**Name:** Kagehenge (Shadow transformation)  
**Classification: **Ninjutsu**  
Rank: **C**  
Class: **Supplementary  
**Range: -  
Summary: **A solid transformation which cannot be seen through. Naru created it by accident when using slightly different seals and too much chakra to perform a regular Henge. The newly transformed body reflects the old one, and once released there may be side effects, appearance wise.

(It's really just because I think Naru's Henge is more unique. You know, like being solid. So I made it into a whole new technique. It doesn't require that much charka but as of the moment she is the only one who can perform it since she's the only one who knows the hand seals and so on.)

Did I ever mention how much I love my reviewers? Almost as much as Ein from Cowboy Bebop (Best corgi ever!) As always I'll try to update quickly but rest assured, it should never take longer than a week :D


	10. Revelations

**A/N **Whoo, new chapter!

Just to clarify for those who have read the original. The only reason I chose to rewrite it, or the main reason why, was to alter her age into something more appropriate/acceptable. Oh, and also to refine the plot :)

To sum up any big changes I've made so far;

1. Naru is now 8 instead of 4  
2. She is accepted as amnesiac  
3. Well, this point will be revealed in this chapter (...hence the title...)

So I'm hoping to get a lot of writing done in these few weeks but whenever I suggest that it never happens. Sorry ;_;

Anyway, as always I hope you enjoy reading~

* * *

**~Chapter 6 - REVELATIONS**

- - - - - _Dream_ - - - - -

"Just how many people are going to fall victim to this stone?" Naru sighed running her hand through her hair. The long, blonde locks hung down to her waist, shifting slightly as a gentle wind blew through the area. She spared a painful glance at Konoha's ever famous memorial stone where more and more familiar names found themselves carved into.

"Naru-san." The sombre tone didn't belong in his voice and she wondered if she could beat it out of him. _No,_ she reasoned with herself, _if that's the case I'll be forced to incapacitate half of our forces, including myself._

"Sometimes I find myself wondering about the future," She said quietly, "A future which many of our comrades would never see. But no matter what, they went down fighting. They gave their lives for us and so shouldn't we do our best to live?" She directed her pained gaze to the man who had cried endlessly for days when they had learnt of the most recent death, "But sometimes it's just so hard, you know?" She felt a few of her own tears slip down.

"He was such a good kid." Though his tears had stopped, she could hear the sorrow in his voice, as he continued to cry without them, "My disciple, he had such a bright future. His whole existence burned brightly." The man clutched a tattered red forehead protector in his bandaged fists. "No teacher should ever outlive his students. No… No father should ever have to outlive his child." She gave the man time to collect himself once more.

"Gai…" Naru trailed off. Of all the names carved into the stone his eyes would always be watching one in particular, 'Rock Lee'.

"I wonder if this is what Kakashi or Kurenai are feeling all the time?" He sighed and watched as clouds began to gather. It would rain soon.

"How's Neji doing?" She asked tentatively. The prodigy Hyuga was somewhat of a ticking time bomb at the moment, though no one could blame him…

"I'd like to say better than me, but I have no idea," Gai confessed, "Neither Tenten nor I have heard from him, though it looks like he's been frequenting the Forest of Death."

"That's not healthy at all." She growled in frustration. She knew she would have to drag him out of his stupor but didn't feel up to it at all. Maybe the best option would be to join him.

"And neither is standing here, day after day," A smooth voice drawled, "Though I'm not really one to speak." Naru felt a comforting arm wrap around her waist and automatically leaned into the new arrival.

"Kakashi…" it seemed Gai had fallen so far he would not even shout at his eternal rival.

"This war has gone on for too long," The silver haired male gritted out, "It's time it finally came to an end, even if I must personally wring the bastard's neck myself! I would gladly tear down every ninja in his army one by one if it meant this would all finally be over." It was unusual for the laidback man to promise such brutality but Naru couldn't help but feel more encouraged. There was despair, almost too much which threatened to suffocate them in their already restless sleeps, but his words kept a small flame of hope lit. No longer flickering or wavering, but burning brightly with the rediscovered resolve.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

The young blonde sat up in her bed, sighing as she ran her small fingers through her too-long hair. Miyu vaguely wondered if it was something about Konoha, like how nostalgic it felt and how dear to her heart the village was, that kept bringing back dreams of the past. The two nights spent in Ame offered nothing but darkness and rest. And, the blonde had yet to decide whether these dreams were good, or bad. This particular memory left her depressed but none the less motivated her towards her goal.

**_Morning~_** Kurama yawned, jumping off the bed and landing soundlessly on the floor.

"Good morning." Miyu replied. She pushed some chakra into her resistance seals and instantly felt the change. She was on level five now and it felt like she was wading through water. In her previous life she had only managed to hit the sixty-seventh level and this time round she was determined to manage all ninety-nine. "So what's on today's agenda?"

**_You need to recover your chakra from the trip to Ame and continue to slowly condition your body,_** the fox advised, **_you'll start attending the Academy the day after tomorrow so until then reacquaint yourself with the villagers once more._** It hurt that the last part was necessary, but she had to remember she was a stranger here.

"GOOD MORNING!" A loud voice shouted, practically shaking the whole apartment complex with its volume. It was followed by a series of short raps on the front door reminding her that today she would be truly begin 'slowly' condition her body back up to scratch.

"Dammit Gai!" Minato groaned as he stumbled out of bed to open the door, "Please keep it down." He for one, wasn't so pleased, about his precious charge joining the spandex teen in his extreme form of training. Though, the blond jounin couldn't really do anything but accept it. He really hoped every morning wasn't going to be like this.

"My apologies Minato-san! I was just excited." He shouted not the slightest bit quieter. Miyu heard a couple of muffled sounds and came down to find the energetic boy tied up and gagged. "Mmfmu!" how he still managed to sound loud and happy she didn't understand, but assuming he had just called her name she waved back.

"I'll be going now." She told her current guardian, dressed in a pair of loose black pants and an orange tank.

"Alright," He sighed, "Just remember not to overexert yourself." He could only watch with a strange feeling of fear as Miyu nodded in reply, already dragging Gai out of the door with a sleepy fox at her heels.

* * *

Gai honestly couldn't remember the last time he was so happy or excited. Maybe it had been when he first saw Kakashi walking down the street and felt some strange urge to best him, a bizarre need to compete with the genius Hatake? But now as he watched Konoha's newest resident run beside him he couldn't help but feel pleased. He knew his teammates, especially Ebisu, had told him time and time again that his training regime was not for the ordinary, or sane for that matter. He didn't really understand their concerns when he had told them of his new training partner, though as he watched her slightly flushed faced he couldn't help but mentally praise her. He knew it was very commendable for an eight year old girl to keep up, even if he had toned it down a bit due to Genma's worries. She didn't look the type to give up and as he had told her once before, her flames of youth shone exceptionally bright.

"Yosh! That's enough running for today!" He shouted after they had both finished several laps of the village. "Next let's get onto some simple exercises."

"H-Hai." Miyu panted. She glared at her fox which had leisurely spent the whole time on her shoulders, weighing her down. He didn't let up at all as she continued the work out. Sitting on her back for push ups, standing on her chest while she did sit ups. Gai hadn't helped, believing it was just her adding her own youthful touch. By the time their first break rolled around she didn't even have the strength to move, instead kneeling collapsed on the ground, apologizing to her crying muscles.

"Are you alright Miyu-chan?" Gai asked with a hint of concern.

"I'm just a little tired." She answered, "Give me a sec, I'll be up in no time." True to her word it wasn't long before she was back on her feet. She'd have to thank her enormous stamina reserves for that, though it wouldn't be doing anything for her sore muscles. Her spandex-wearing friend was happy enough and quickly offered to spar. Miyu agreed, quickly taking up the offer, mostly so she would be able to finally find out how much her skills had degraded.

* * *

Miyu was completely, and utterly unprepared, when Minato let out a feminine high pitched scream as his charge walked through their front door. She was so startled by the sound and almost fell back, if not for Kurama giving her a supporting push from behind. She gave him a thankful look and he returned with a shrug. "What the hell happened to you?!" He screamed distressed. The precious little girl had her hair matter with mud and leaved while her clothes were torn and dirtied. She also seemed to be soaked to the bone, even though he was absolutely sure there had been no rain, and when he looked closer it seemed the edges of her pants were singed.

"I was out training!" She chirped.

"I understand that but how did you get in this state?" He exclaimed. And was that blood on her clothes?!

"One thing led to another and… you know…" He definitely didn't like the hidden innuendo he picked up even though the sane part of his mind told his he was over analysing.

"I'll murder that kid!" Minato growled, strangely protective.

"What?! No, don't do that! Most of this happened after we trained anyway!" Miyu responded in alarm.

"Then what exactly happened?" He asked.

"Well," She'd tell him as much of the truth as she could manage, "I was playing around with different jutsu accidently burned my pants," She started, "So I went to the river to put it out but I slipped and fell into the mud. Than on the way home I stumbled on a stone and fell into a bush." Better let him believe she was accident prone since this would probably be a recurring experience. He calmed down from his frantic panic and could now see she didn't actually look hurt, just messy.

"And the blood?" Minato pressed.

"I tripped and fell?" It was plausible enough though her tone wasn't very convincing.

"Hm." He wasn't buying it but in the end she seemed fine, probably due to her healing factor. "You need to take better care of yourself," Minato told her in concern, "Be careful next time ok?

"Of course!" Miyu replied with a mock salute. He sighed again wondering why her personality seemed so familiar to him.

"So, what jutsu were you practising anyway?" He finally asked, curious of what kind of jutsus she had in her repertoire.

"Katon – Gokakyu." She replied a moment after. Minato was initially surprised, but nowadays it wasn't unusual for a young ninja to pick up a C-rank here or there. In fact, wasn't it a tradition among the Uchiha to pass along that specific fire technique?

"Any others you know of?" He asked. Miyu shrugged.

"Not really. That's why I was just going through familiar hand seals."

"Ah." Minato assumed the girl was relying on muscle memory to remember any of her previous skills.

**_Kit,_** Kurama's deep voice caught her attention and she turned to see him staring pointedly at the window.

"Is there something you need?" Minato asked. His questioning lingering in the silence. He never failed to notice how Miyu and her fox had already reacted.

"Hokage-sama requests your presence." A hidden Anbu replied, squatting on the windowsill. "Both of you." He elaborated.

"Got it." The Anbu stared for a few more seconds before jumping down and vanishing. "Well then," Minato turned his attention to the young girl, "Why don't we go see what the Hokage wants?

* * *

"Minato?!" A weary yet cheerful voice called out his name as they entered the office. Miyu looked to the speaker, a slender, young woman with crimson hair that hung significantly past her waist. Violet eyes caught her own, showing confusion and suspicion within them. "…Who?"

"Ah, I forgot that you wouldn't have met, seeing as you've been on a mission," The Hokage began, mumbling slightly to himself, "Kushina, this is Uzunami Miyu, Konoha's newest resident. And Miyu, this is Uzumaki Kushina, another tenant of Minato's apartment."

"It's nice to meet you." Miyu said with a polite bow. The fox beside her copied her movements catching the older woman's attention.

"A fox?" She questioned.

"Apparently he's Miyu's partner. Possibly like a ninken, we're not really sure." Minato, said.

"Apparently? How can you be unsure?" She continued.

"Well, Miyu is amnesiac," The Hokage stated, "Inoichi has confirmed it." Kushina looked as if she wanted to say more but he cleared his throat, indicating he wasn't finished. "Anyway, there was another reason I called you here. Not just for introductions but we're still waiting on one more person."

"Hokage-sama?" A knock sounded at the door, announcing a new arrival.

"Ah, Fugaku. Come in." As the Hokage revealed his identity Minato seemed to grumble. Similarly when the Uchiha head entered and saw the others present he let out a small huff. "Now before we begin I'd like to make the last introductions. Fugaku this is Uzunami Miyu, Miyu this man is Uchiha Fugaku."

"Nice to meet you." Miyu repeated for the second time that day, mimicking her earlier bow.

"Hn." The young girl twitched at the reply.

**_At least you now know where both his sons picked up the annoying habit from._** Kurama commented.

"So this is the amnesiac kunoichi we've picked up?" He questioned rhetorically.

"Yes," Sarutobi answered, "And the reason I've called you all together is to discuss her, particularly her lineage." Miyu turned her attention to him warily and he handed the each of adults a compilation of papers.

"I would've thought her relations would be obvious." Fugaku grumbled, as he frowned at the rising jounin. Just looking at the two blondes, one couldn't doubt that they shared too many commonalities for it to just be a coincidence. He would even go out on a stretch, and by adding the Uzumaki into the equation, guess Miyu the by-product of the two lovers… though the ages seemed inconsistent.

"What is this?" Minato wondered, briefly begging to skim through it.

"The results of Miyu blood test." Sarutobi answered simply enough. The girl in question sucked in her breath while staring in shock. _When did he get a hold of my blood?_

**_Actually, when we arrived your clothes, or what was left of them were covered in it. then again it would not have been hard for them to take a sample while you were unconscious._** Kurama admitted.

"Eh?" Kushina had flipped to the end, and gasped with unhidden surprise.

"What is it?" Minato asked curiously.

"The machine we ran her blood though is one that compares it to each person currently living in Konoha." The Hokage began, "With it, it's possible to see if two people are actually related. We can also break down the sample to find and matches with others. What you have there is her blood type, approximate age, general description and, apparent relations."

"What?!" Minato exclaimed, looking up from the page, his hands trembling, "You've got to be joking right?" His sky blue eyes shifted nervously between his leader and the girl beside him before landing back on the files he held. "This can't possibly be right!" Miyu would've been lying if she said that his denial didn't hurt, but technically he was right…since she hadn't been born yet.

**_It will be different than what you are expecting._** To fox beside her noted, remaining calm and composed. She sent him a look of confusion. **_The jutsu we performed would have ordinarily killed the user. There are two reason why you were able to survive. One, being able to supply the sufficient amount of chakra, and two, your regenerative abilities. You arrived here near death because of the changes that had to be done to you. Sometimes the wrong things are changed and that causes the low success rate, and possibly shortened lifespan afterwards._**

"…changes?" She echoed inaudibly. The fox nodded and continued to explain.

**_I told you before. Two of the same beings cannot exist at the same time. The jutsu therefore serves a second purpose. Other than just transporting the user back in time, it also has the precautions to alter their body down to a molecular level. Of course it cannot create anything that does not already exist, so it merely changes what is already there. Therefore you relation to the Namikaze and Uzumaki still exists. The question is though, to what extent._** He licked his paws thoughtfully, and climbed onto her shoulders as if to get a better look.

"Are you sure this is correct?" Fugaku questioned. Since finding out the purpose of the gathering Miyu has almost forgotten him, although now she questioned his presence.

"Ano, can I ask what's going on?" She piped up, craning her neck to see inside the closest files which happened to be Minato's. Hey eyes skimmed past the irrelevant information until she found what she was searching for. _!?...How did…Sasuke?..._

"Well, Miyu," Sarutobi said gently, "It turns out that you have family within Konoha. In fact, the three in the room with you right now are related to you one way or another."

"I'm not quite sure how this is possible." Fugaku admitted.

"Isn't it obvious?" Kushina asked, "Clearly, before you married Mikoto, you had a short fling with another woman and conceived Miyu. And that woman was somehow related to both Minato and I, most likely our half-sibling." Her answer was logical and the only one which fit the ratio of the girls DNA. "Though, I don't like to think that one of my parents committed adultery."

"Ah…" Minato hadn't known his parents, in fact any family, at all. To suddenly find out he had a half-sister, who was likely to be dead, and a niece who was currently beside him… he was shocked, yet happy.

"Huh?!" Miyu gasped and flailed as her feet left the floor and she was swung up high, "Hey! Let me down!" Minato was blissfully unaware of her yelling as he threw the younger girl up and down.

**_I guess this was a good turn of events,_** the fox commented idly, feeling how happy his partner was, though she was reluctant to show it on her face.

"I can't believe I actually have a niece!" His smile was so joyful and carefree at that moment neither of the women or the Hokage felt like stopping him. Unlike them though, Fugaku had no such restrictions.

"Namikaze." His stern voice cut across the room and through the blond's laughter, "I ask that you put down my… daughter." Minato stopped mid twirl and reluctantly held her out for Fugaku to accept. The Uchiha was unprepared and awkwardly accepted the girl after the previous holder made no move to put her down. Soon after receiving her however, he released her, letting the girl stand on her own.

"Thank you." She mumbled softly.

"Hn." A soft chuckling sounded in the room, and they each turned to a stare at a smiling Hokage.

"Well then, I'm glad there aren't any problems here." Sarutobi brought up his hands and folded them under his chin. "Now then, the next matter to discuss is her living arrangements. Currently Miyu lives with Minato but seeing as you more closely related you may take her to the compound if you wish Fugaku."

"Huh? No way!" The blond jounin shouted indignantly. He glared at Fugaku as the man took the time to think it over. "But Kushina and I share an apartment so it's two against one, right?"

"I suppose that does even things out." The Hokage allowed, "Well then Miyu, I guess it's up to you to decide."

* * *

**A/N **And that's it for this chapter.

The dream was kinda sad. Well I felt sad writing it. The order of them are pretty mixed up but you can bet that most of them will go on to exlpain a couple character deaths...(I wonder if you can pick up the subtle reference to another one in there...)

Oooo...So I guess this was a pretty important chapter.

We get a bit of Gai, the introduction of Kushina and Fugaku's 'acceptance' (...or is it?)

For those that were wondering, the Uchiha blood originates all the way back from Sasuke's jutsu (Ketsueki Iten - Blood Transfer)...ahaha, it was literal...though at the time it was well below 5%.

Due to the time-travelling jutsu Miyu's DNA looks a bit like this... 25% Namikaze, 25% Uzumaki, and 50% Uchiha.

As always, thanks for reading :D

And another big thanks for reviewers :)


	11. Introduction

**A/N **Yo! Welcome back.

I'm proud to present you all with the newest chapter of Tender Sea: Revamped~

Right just to clarify things. Miyu's existence and cover story won't be affecting Minato and Kushina's relationship. I've had a hard time trying to explain it but basically they both share a common half-sister (that is in reality non existent), but they themselves aren't related at all (with or without the half-sibling).

Wel I think this chapter is fairly important (at least it's a precursor for a major reveal in the next part...) ahahah...

Also some character might be a bit OOC but there's not much to work with when they're dead in the future (ie, the Uchiha clan, Kushina and Minato etc), or still susceptible to change (i.e Iruka, Itachi etc)

But anyway, the positive feedback is encouraging and motivating. I really do mean it when I thank you for reading at the end of each chapter.

* * *

**~Chapter 7 - INTRODUCTION**

Uchiha Fugaku was by no means a cold-hearted man like many others would suggest. He was the head of the esteemed Uchiha clan and so acted as such, but, he was also a family man. He had a loving and beautiful wife and a prodigal son he could be proud of and now apparently, a daughter as well. Then again something was definitely off. He knew for a fact, that she was definitely not his daughter. If anything she looked the exact replica of Namikaze. He didn't know what to think. Unless the results had been fabricated, what Uzumaki had suggested would have to be correct. Yet he had no recollection of any such event. Before Mikoto there had never been anyone else. However, if the papers spoke the truth, then she was 50% Uchiha. Half. It was enough to manifest the Sharingan.

Sighing he rubbed his temples, and entered his home. The Sharingan was a coveted kekkai genkai and also the pride of his clan. It could not be allowed for an outsider to attain it. Then again she also held connections to some very important people. It would be wise for him to keep her close. He thought in place, listening to the soft, quick footsteps of his son approaching. "Welcome home, Chichi-ue." Itachi called, with a small, almost non-existent smile.

"Hn." Fugaku rested a hand on top of his son's head, "I hope you have behaved yourself." He felt the nod, and made a noise of approval. He turned in search of his wife who he later found humming in the kitchen as she cooked.

"Back already?" She asked surprised, "What did the Hokage want?"

"It had to do with the girl Minato brought back." The Uchiha head began.

"Oh? I saw her just this morning running around with Maito Gai." Mikoto remembered, "She's a cute little thing." Fugaku showed a fraction of a smile. Maybe this was a sign that his wife would welcome the new addition.

* * *

**_Kit._** Miyu felt herself being nudged but stubbornly resisted. **_Kit, wake up already._**

"Five more minutes…" She curled up further in her warm bed after feeling the chill of the morning air.

**_You know there is no point in trying to get back to sleep,_** Kurama drawled,**_ you are just being lazy._**

"I know," despite what she said she made no move to get out, "I didn't dream last night…"

**_Did you want to?_** Her companion asked.

"I miss them," She mumbled softly, "If dreams are the only way I can see them again then…"

**_You can still see them,_ **the fox nudged her small body. He didn't like to see his former container look so weak. **_You have seen Kakashi nearly almost every day since our arrival._**

"It's different. They're different." They were two different people. That was the only reason she could be around him, because to her, Kakashi Hatake had already died. Her ninja heart had steeled itself stopping any tears. "This Konoha isn't my Konoha." Her voice cracked and she wondered if she had finally broken.

**_They are different,_** Kurama agreed, **_but you still have a place here. You have carved yourself a place here, with your own power._** He comforted her with a furry paw on her head. **_I think I may have rushed you into this, I have forgotten that humans need time. _**He let the girl lie there. Dawn was still a far while away so she needn't worry about the day yet. When the demon though back he couldn't remember her having mourned properly yet.

"Miyu?" Minato poked his head into her room, feeling something off, "Are you ok?"

"…" She didn't respond, adding to his worry.

"What's wrong?" He came to sit by the bed, Kurama not moving, but staring at him intently. Minato was at a loss. What happened to the cheerful kid he knew? Then again she had lost her all memories so maybe it was the panic and stress finally catching up to her. "There, there," he patted her back in a soothing manner, "It's ok, I'll be here for you." He said reassuringly. She remained completely silent but the irregular breathing told him she was still awake. Neither said anything for the next couple of hours. Not even noticing when violet eyes began watching them sadly.

* * *

"Are you ready for the Academy?" Minato asked, while flipping an omelette.

"Mmhmm." Miyu responded cheerfully, this morning's woes pushed to the back of her mind. She had changed out of her pyjamas and wore black pants with a long-sleeved, black top. Not a speck of orange on her.

"She's starting the Academy?" Kushina asked, walking to the dining table. She took a seat beside the girl and Minato handed her a plate with freshly cooked food.

"Yeah, looks like she's already learnt some of the basics so Hokaga-sama decided to let her attend." He answered.

"Hmm. How interesting." Kushina clapped her hands enthusiastically, "I can't wait to see how she does!"

"We're not really sure what she remembers but she has the academy jutsu down as well as the basics." The blond jounin explained, "Of course I'll help you with anything you need, Miyu-chan."

"Arigato, Minato…jisan? Jichan? Chan?" She puzzled her way through the possible honorifics, not noticing Kushina's snort of laughter.

"Isn't she the cutest?" Minato beamed towards his girlfriend before focusing his attention back onto the girl. "Feel free to call me anything you like…but Jisan makes me feel a bit old."

"Minato..." She decided, dropping the suffix completely.

"She's a sweet little thing." The red haired woman turned her attention to the younger girl, "How about me? You can call me neechan."

"Ah, alright Kushina-neechan." Miyu repeated endearingly. Kushina smiled happily in response.

**_What a happy looking scene. _**Kurama yipped while trying to get back to sleep on Miyu's shoulders. Kushina stared at the furred animal intently. It seemed so familiar, but maybe it was just the species.

"A fox huh…" Subconsciously her hand moved to rest on her stomach where her own tenant slept.

"So do you have anything to do today?" Minato asked, jolting the older woman from her daze.

"I have to check in with the old man but then I'm free for the next couple of days." She replied nonchalantly.

"You know, he is the Hokage so you shouldn't blatantly disrespect him." His brow furrowed in concentration, "I don't even know how you get away with half the stuff you say to him."

"I speak the truth. He's old and he knows it." She snorted and shrugged, "Plus he's cool that way and doesn't seem to mind as long as it's not in front of anyone important." Miyu found herself nodding along.

"I like Jiji!" She added.

"I like you." Kushina said, ruffling the girl's hair. Miyu's cheeks puffed out in irritation as she tried to fix the mess.

"Well at least you two get along," Minato sighed, "Come on Miyu, I'll walk you to the Academy."

**_Finally,_** the fox huffed, trailing along as the slow day started to pick up.

* * *

Waiting in front of the Academy, it didn't appear to have changed a bit. Just standing outside the gates Miyu could already hear the excited chatter of kids. Most parents stared at the blonde duo with open curiosity, their children doing the same. She had guessed by now that Minato was already some sort of village idol and she was a young girl who shared a striking resemblance. "Will you be ok?" He asked, crouching down to meet her eyes.

"I think so," She replied, "And if anything goes wrong I have Kurama with me." She patted the fox fondly.

"Alright, well I guess I'd better get going," He shifted on his feet, a look of concern crossing his face, "I'll be moving your stuff over to the Uchiha compound later on. You know how to get their right?"

"Hai." The girl nodded.

"Alright then, ah, feel free to contact me if you need something." He raised his hand and gave a small wave which she returned enthusiastically.

"Right, see you later!" Miyu skipped into the building with her faithful companion, leaving her uncle by himself.

"I feel kind of lonely," Minato said offhandedly, "Maybe I should give Kakashi and Rin unexpected morning training?" He whistled happily while his two remaining students were overcome with a sense of foreboding.

Meanwhile Miyu made her way to her classroom holding a slip of paper the Hokage had told her to give to Saito-san, the academy instructor that would be teaching her. She came to room 2-A and knocked on the door politely. "Huh?" A gruff voice called, "Come in." Miyu sild open the wooden doors but stayed back nervously. She hoped she would be able to make friends.

"Um..." The fox nudged her impatiently from behind and she stumbled into the room, "That wasn't nice Kurama!" She shouted angrily at the fox.

"Who are you little Miss?" asked a well-muscled man with cropped black hair and a chuunin vest. Miyu handed him the note and looked around the class nervously. Everyone looked about nine years old, but she was told that this was the graduating class.

**_The age limit was probably raised in our time because the war was over_** Kurama informed as he strode into the room, surprising most students. Taking a look at the students in the top row she almost did a double take. There was a familiar looking brunette sitting alone in one of the back rows, a recognizable scar stretching across the bridge of his nose.

"Well class," The chuunin said loudly, "We'll be getting a new student. This is Uchiha Miyu, your future comrade."

"Nice to meet you!" She greeted as whispers broke out. It was overall confusing, for the blonde Namikaze look alike, after arriving with said ninja, to turn out to be an Uchiha.

"I'm Takao Saito and I'll be your teacher," Saito introduced, "Does anyone have any questions."

"How old is she?" an Inuzuka asked from the front row without raising his hand. Miyu didn't doubt that she looked younger than her age.

"Age doesn't matter when you're a shinobi." Her teacher answered bluntly.

"What's up with the fox?" A girl with shoulder length black hair asked. The chuunin looked at her for an answer.

"This is Kurama." Miyu introduced, "He is my partner." She left it at that and everybody seemed to understand seeing as there was a similar situation with the Inuzuka.

"Are those whiskers?" Another girl asked while pointing at her cheek.

"They're… birthmarks." Miyu said uncomfortably.

"Are you sure he's an Uchiha?" A boy up the front questioned doubtfully.

"Yes. Alright! That's it for questions." Saito clapped loudly getting everyone's attention, "Sit wherever you want gaki." He said. Everyone watched her expectantly and were surprised to see her walk all the way up the rows to sit next to the lone boy.

"Hello. I'm Miyu" The short blonde introduced with a grin.

"I'm Umino Iruka." The brunette grinned back in a friendly manner. _Iruka was such a cute kid. _Miyu thought happily.

**_I heard he was a lot like you._** Kurama voiced while sitting on the desk in front of her, **_you will probably have a lot in common._** She smiled happily while watching the boy out of the corner of her eyes. He seemed to struggle to pay attention and she caught his glances each time he turned to look at her, much to his embarrassment. She thanked whatever god up there that there was less knowledge for her to remember. A good chunk of the history had yet to happen and she had grasped the theory a long time ago. Their teacher continued to talk about stealth and other similar topics while pacing in front of the room. Hours dragged by for her before he finally stopped.

"Alright brats," Takao announced with a brisk tone, "It's lunch so get your shit and get out of my classroom." Miyu personally found it funny that her teacher spoke so frankly, comparing him to the future Iruka.

**_Lunch… I'm going hunting. _**The fox stood and shook out his fur before abruptly jumping out the window.

"Whoa!" Iruka jumped in his chair as he felt the breeze and saw a red blur, "Where's he going?"

"Kurama's going to hunt for his lunch. Do you mind if I eat with you?" She pressed her fingers together in a marvelous impression of a certain shy Hyuga.

"Uh… no I don't. Do you want to go outside?" The blonde nodded and he led her to the base of a large tree, his eyes brimming with curiosity.

"So, what do you have for lunch?" Iruka asked pulling out his bento. In response Miyu pulled out her own orange wrapped bento. Taking off the lid both kids were surprised and the cutesy food lying neatly beside the rice. "Did your mum make that for you?" He wondered.

"…No, I think it was Minato." She answered truthfully.

"Ah." Iruka hadn't expected that of the famous ninja. "What's up with you two anyway?" He asked instead, "At first I thought you were his daughter, but then Saito-sensei introduced you as an Uchiha. I don't think I've ever seen a blonde and blue-eyed Uchiha." All this was said as he wolfed down his food with the speed only a growing boy could manage.

"I'm him niece." She answered easily enough.

"Hmm." Iruka nodded in acceptance, "What about being an Uchiha then? Can you do that eye-thing?"

"The Sharingan?" Miyu deciphered. She wondered if she should be able to do it or not. Theoretically, under the guise of her amnesia, she could pull out a lot of varying skills.

"Yeah, that one." The boy remembered.

"I'm sorry," She decided, "I'm not sure how."

"Oh well," He replied, only slightly disappointed, "How old are you anyway?"

"Eight." She responded.

"Really?" He squinted his eyes as he inspected her closely, "I thought for sure you were younger but in the end that's only a year less than the rest of us."

"So what have I missed out on?" Miyu began, "I mean, what have you guys learnt already?"

"Hm? Well Saito-sensei doesn't really care too much about theory and history," The brunette scratched his nose in embarrassment, "I don't mind since I'm not very good at those things… Anyway, we went through the Jutsu last week. You know which ones I'm talking about right?"

"Do you mean Bushin, Henge and Kawamiri?" He nodded showing she was correct.

"Yeah, those are the ones. We have our graduation coming up so you better learn them if you already haven't." Iruka advised, "Every couple of days we practise our sparing. We did that yesterday so you just missed out. Other than that there's not much else. Most of the times we go through mock situations in class."

"Mock situations?" the blonde prompted him further.

"Yeah," He tried to remember back a few days, "I think the most recent one was where you were a chuunin on delivery that got captured by the enemy."

"And what did you do?" Miyu asked curiously.

"Ahahah…" Iruka laughed nervously and mumbled out his answer, "…I said to struggle, fight back and try to escape."

"And how did Saito-sensei say you did?" The girl wondered.

"Ah, he said I'd be dead since they'd kill me for being too troublesome." Iruka mumbled unhappily, "Act complacent unless you know you can win the fight. Only an idiot would try to confront stronger shinobi while outnumbered." His voice deepened as he tried to mimic his teacher's idiosyncrasies, "Actually, struggle all you want. You brats are better off dead so you don't reveal any village secrets."

"Pfft." His impression of his teacher was horrible. Both kids broke out into childish laughter.

"You look like you're having fun Iruka." A voice sneered. Both children stopped laughing and Miyu turned to see who had interrupted them. Black hair, onyx eyes, and a cocky demeanour, it couldn't be anyone other than an Uchiha. She sighed and packed away her forgotten lunch.

"Go away Ichirou." Iruka glared back at the boy.

"Make me." He taunted. Miyu never liked bullies and instantly took a further disliking to the boy. "Who are you?" He asked rudely, turning his attention to the blonde.

"Isn't common courtesy to offer you own name first?" She shot back. He didn't react to the jab and instead announced himself proudly.

"I'm Ichirou Uchiha," He answered, "I'll ask again. Who the hell are you midget and what are you doing with the deadlast?"

"Midget? Miyu repeated twitching slightly.

"Just leave us alone, Ichirou." Iruka said tiredly.

"Why should I?" The boy scoffed, "I'm just here to make sure you know your place." He made a grab for the brunet but was intercepted as a small hand grasped his wrist.

"I'll ask you now to leave." Miyu said in a chilling tone. No one would ever harm a loved one in front of her. Not while she could help it.

"I'll leave when I want to." The Uchiha answered with a glare, snatching his arm back from the girl's surprisingly strong grip.

"...Trash." Miyu insulted him with a heated glare.

"What did you call me?" Ichirou growled angrily.

"Sorry, was I too quiet for you?" She growled back, closer to an animal's, "I said you're trash." Iruka was doing his best to stop her but his efforts were futile. The larger boy lunged for her and she smiled back wickedly. Slapping his outstretched arm away she swept his foot underneath him and sent the boy sprawling to the ground. Iruka watched on looking rather shocked. "Lunch will be over soon, we'd better get going." She said, shaking Iruka from his astonishment.

"Right." He agreed. He turned away slow enough to catch some movement in the corner of his eye from where the proud Uchiha had fallen. "Miyu!" Iruka suddenly exclaimed watching as Ichirou went for a sneak attack. Without turning the blonde stuck out a leg ad tripped the boy, again, and sending him tumbling.

"I'm not an idiot, Uchiha," She said in clipped tones, "Annoy me or Iruka again and I swear I will break at least one of your limbs." She left him in the dirt as she and Iruka walked back to the classroom. The rest of the day was spent finding out what she had missed in the curriculum and explaining some difficult parts of theory to Iruka.

* * *

Miyu walked leisurely out of the Academy, looking quite bored and whistling an annoyingly repetitive tune. Ku padded silently on her right, having returned from his hunting trip, keeping an eye out for any possible dangers.

**_How was lunch?_** He asked pleasantly. She would have replied if a voice hadn't cut her off.

"That's her!" She widened her eyes as a distraction presented itself. Ichirou looking slightly beat up, was pointing her out to the two adults behind him. Both men had a strangely bored expression on their faces, one even yawning slightly.

**_It seems I missed out on quite a bit._** The fox deduced._ It was nothing important_. Miyu answered truthfully.

"Can I help you?" Miyu put up her most innocent look, causing the guards to look at Ichirou sceptically.

"Um, are you sure?" asked the guard on the left, with long hair tied in a ponytail.

"Of course!" Ichirou stamped his feet like a child on a tantrum, which she supposed he was, "She's definitely the one who attacked me!"

"Sorry about this." Said the man on the left with short cropped hair, "But do you mind coming along with us?" Miyu shrugged and allowed them to lead her to the Uchiha compound. It was strange to see it so full of life and people. She made a mental note that she would also have to somehow prevent the Uchiha massacre. They led her inside and she was brought to a man she presumed was his father.

"Otou-san!" Ichirou began. Ah, so she was right.

"What is it?" The man looked slightly exasperated.

"Today at school that girl suddenly came up to me in a sneak attack and beat me up!" The child lied straight through his teeth.

"Excuse me?" Miyu asked, "I did nothing of the sort." Kurama snorted at the foolish bully.

"She's lying." Ichirou continued, "And she made it so I couldn't fight back by using her fox to threaten my classmates." His father rubbed his forehead with his hand.

"May I begin by asking who you are, Miss?" He turned his attention to the little girl. He wondered how a small girl like her could have beaten his son. Ichirou, even with all his faults, was the best fighter in his class.

"My name is Uchiha Miyu," She inclined her head politely, but after they heard her name, she instantly felt that the atmosphere in the room had shifted.

"Ah," The boy's father looked at her with something that could only be described as contempt, "Fugaku's bastard child?"

* * *

**A/N **Thanks for reading.

You don't really have to focus on the OCs, they're there to make the story easier to write and usually won't have a major role.

As you can see I've made Fugaku a bit more 'accepting' and caring, after all from all the flashbacks I've seen, he really does love his family. (plus I figured things really began falling into hell after the Uchiha were accused of the Kyuubi attack)

Uh, we get to meet Saito-sensei (and random, fun to write character), as well as younger Iruka (he's probably going to become fairly different in the future.)

Miyu has adopted the Uchiha name (she's still kept the others don't worry), and she's moving into the compound. After all, I think Minato and Kushina would be more understanding, and from withing she can make the changes she wants~

AHHH, I hate ending chapters because I'll always remember something I've forgot to add...

Anyway, as always, I hope to see you in the next chapter.


	12. Uchiha and Ambitions

**A/N **BAM! New chapter

Just letting people know, but Miyu, despite her de-ged body is still fairly string (if Hanzo was any indication of that) though, she's not unbeatable. i.e. she wouldn't be able to beet a hokage at her current skill level, nor Anbu, and would be hard pressed to beat a trained jounin. Although, that in itself is merely her own current level. Throwing a ninetailed fox into the mix can have a major effect.

So I think I've chosen the direction I want Iruka to go in (and some other characters). Mainly just the 'loyal to a fault' guy. And it might be fun to see him grow along side her. Of course, he'll undoubtedly be surpassing his future self. I always felt he had so much potential to be stronger, he did have the resolve as well as a generous heart. So, seeing as this is a fanfic, why not make give him a level up?

Now Im just wondering what I'll do with some other historical events. I have a couple scenarios for either endings of things such as the Uchiha Massacre, Hyuga incidents etc.

Well, those are just my own thoughts so feel free to ignore them and just get on with the next chapter.

* * *

**~Chapter 8 - UCHIHA AND AMBITIONS**

Miyu tensed as the man continued to look at her with disdain. It brought up bad memories. Kurama noticed her reaction, and lowered his stance, growling a soft warning. He caught the father's attention and was rewarded with a look of disgust. His growling increased as the man carelessly angered the demon.

"Can I ask you to repeat that?" Miyu asked, remaining politely.

"What? The fact you are Fugaku's daughter?" Ichirou looked at his father strangely, having never seen him behave this way before. "Or the fact that you are an unwanted bastard child?" The younger girl sighed heavily, in the end she had already expected something like this from the prideful clan.

**_Now, the question is where you would like to stand in their hierarchy,_** Kurama commented,**_ at the moment I would not be so against a position at the top. If only to prevent fools like this one from acting so conceited._** The fox mentally ranted about foolish humans while Miyu took the time to calm herself.

"What's wrong? Does it hurt to hear the truth?" The man commented offhandedly when she hadn't responded, "Finally it looks like Fugaku slipped up. Good, it will be easier to bring him down this way." He mumbled to himself. It should have been inaudible for humans, but the fox easily picked it up, and anything the animal heard was of course passed onto his partner. Maybe it would be easier to prevent the massacre than she thought.

"I'm sorry," She began, her tone even, "It was just that, from my knowledge, isn't the Sharingan well sought-after? I don't quite understand how I could be unwanted if I carried it in my blood."

"As if a mongrel like you could ever manifest it," The man stated, "It would have been better to kill you then let you tarnish the family name."

"I have been nothing but civil towards you so far, your threats and insults are unwarranted," Miyu grit out, beginning to lose her temper, "But if you're determined to continue I'll have to prove just how wrong you are."

"I'll speak to you however I want." He replied uncooperatively, "Its better you learn your place now if you hope to survive." He ended with an open-ended threat to her life. Kurama growled with his hackles raised, they didn't have to take his hostility, but he didn't think a dead body would help ease Miyu into their clan.

"I think you're the one who needs to learn their place," Miyu snarled. This man rubbed her the wrong way and brought up memories she would rather forget. She felt the chakra in her body surge with her emotions and made no move to restrain them, even when her eyes were dyed red. Ichirou gaped with his mouth hanging wide open, his father choking in surprise. "I am Uchiha Namikaze Uzumaki Miyu, I don't care if you accept me or not, but next the time you threaten or insult me will be the last." She turned abruptly, with a final glare over her shoulder, and left with her fox stalking behind her.

**_For a second I thought you might have become the instigator of another Uchiha Massacre,_** Kurama commented offhandedly.

"Almost," She muttered, trying to calm down as she walked, "Are these the kind of people Sasuke grew up with?"

**_They are more similar to the Hyuga then they would like to admit._** The fox voiced her own opinions before she had a chance to. It seemed like it wasn't all rainbows and sunshine with the Uchiha. She brought a hand to her forehead and closed her eyes, deactivating them, while trying to ease an oncoming headache.

"Yip!" Kurama barked out a warning but Miyu was too distracted, bumping into the unknown object.

"Ouch!" She winced and rubbed her backside which had fallen on the cruel unforgiving floor. Across from her was another child who looked a few years younger than her. Her gaze travelled upwards from the plain brown shorts and black t-shirt, decorated with the signature red and white fan. Slightly chubby cheeks from excess baby fat and short black hair framing his pale face, she would never forget those dark piercing eyes.

"Who are you?" The boy asked with a curious look. He had never seen such a sunny person before with golden hair and bright blue eyes except from Namikaze Minato. The unknown girl in the dark clothes had given him a certain look when she thought he wasn't watching. He didn't recognize it but, why did it seem so sad?

"Sorry about that, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." Miyu said helping him up, "I'm Uchiha Miyu and this is my partner Kurama." The fox yipped a greeting.

**_Nice to see you again, chibitachi._** The Uchiha would probably never hear the mocking words or tone.

"It's alright," He responded, "It was partly my fault as well. I'm Uchiha Itachi." His identity was confirmed. "I don't think I've ever seen you in the compound before."

"I'm moving in today. It's nice to meet you Itachi" Miyu smiled brightly at him and Itachi was broken out of his usual apathetic expression.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance as well." He wondered why she was moving in in the first place and had no trouble asking.

"I'm only half Uchiha." Miyu explained. He raised a brow in curiosity, "Actually, I came to the village a little while ago."

"Where were you before?" She shrugged in response.

"I can't remember." The two had long taken to sitting in the middle of the hallway as they spoke with Kurama settled in between them and was soon asleep as he dozed.

"You can't remember?" Itachi repeated.

"I have amnesia." She explained.

"So you can't remember anything at all?" He asked, slightly confused.

"Well I remembered my name, a couple jutsu, how to fight and Kurama." She listed them off her fingers.

"So then you're a ninja?" He seemed more interested now.

"Yeah, today was my first day at the Academy." She wished she had a camera to capture his expression. Stoic, chubby faced, and slightly excited.

"Can you show me a jutsu?" Itachi asked running his hands through the foxes surprisingly silky fur.

"Probably. What do you want to see?" Miyu offered. Her repertoire was currently restricted but she was sure she could do something that interested him.

"Bushin no jutsu." She didn't even blink before a small cloud of smoke appeared and her mirror image joined her.

"Like this?" They spoke in synch, watching Itachi tried to decide who to speak to.

"You didn't use any hand seals." He commented, turning to who he though was the original.

"I'm good with this jutsu." She went out on a limb and ruffled the boy's hair. To her joy he hadn't minded much. They spent the rest day talking aimlessly to each other something that two children should've been doing all along, instead of worrying about the raging war happening in Itachi's case, and the one that would come in Miyu's. She still wasn't good enough to fully open up the young Uchiha but an almost-smile every now and then was good enough for now. Kurama purred contentedly as he felt the Uchiha scratch a particular spot behind his ear.

"What do we have here Itachi?" A kind voice spoke over a calm silence as a woman walked towards them. Miyu recognized her and from the look in the woman's eyes, it went both ways.

"Haha-ue." Itachi called in monotone.

"It's nice to meet you." She greeted, "I am Mikoto, as you can see I'm also Itachi's mother."

"The pleasure's mine…Uchiha-sama," The name rolled uncomfortably off her tongue, "I'm Uchiha Namikaze Uzumaki Miyu and this is my partner Kurama." The fox, after roused from his slumber, yipped a small greeting.

"There's no need to address me like that," Mikoto said, "After all…" She caught herself and gave the girl a wry smile, "But really, your name seems like a mouthful."

"It is." Itachi watched the interaction, greatly interested. There was something he was missing.

"Well, it's getting late," His mother said watching the setting sun, "We should probably go in for dinner."

"Will you be staying for dinner?" Itachi asked inquisitively. Yet again the two women shared a look.

"As long as I'm not intruding." Miyu finally replied.

"Of course not." Mikoto reassured. The Uchiha matriarch led the way into compound, passing by several other residential houses to reach her own.

**_How nostalgic. _**Kurama commented, reading his partner's thoughts.

"Come on in then," Mikoto waved invitingly, "Fugaku's been waiting." Miyu nodded and walked forward with the fox flanking her. Itachi, slightly confused trailed behind the girl, and together they came across his father sitting at the dining table.

"How would you like me to address you?" Was the first thing said in the room. Miyu finished speaking and looked up at the Uchiha head, anticipating his answer.

"... However you call Namikaze would be fine." He decided before turning towards his son. "Itachi, there's something important I have to tell you."

"Yes, Chichi-ue?" The boy was feeling apprehensive at the slight tension in the air.

"The girl beside you is Uchiha Miyu, She'll be staying with us from now on," Itachi nodded in understanding but what was said next astounded him, "She is also your half-sister."

* * *

- - - - - _Dream_ - - - - -

"Ne, Kakashi," began a rather gorgeous blonde with eyes that mirrored the ocean's depths. It was hard to believe the incredible cute child of his beloved sensei had grown into the powerful woman that sat on the bench beside him, swinging her long legs back and forth. She wore the ever familiar uniform of Konoha's black ops, honouring her final day before retirement.

"Hm, what is it?" He looked up from a battered orange book, personally signed by the author who had promised a sequel that would never come.

"Did you ever find yourself missing Anbu?" She asked fiddling with the custom made fox mask.

"All too often." He answered deciding the conversation was probably worth putting his book down. "It's too easy to leave yourself on autopilot there. Almost addictive in the way you merely have follow orders and the fact missions sometimes get so hard you have no time to think about anything else."

"So that's why we're discharged?" Naru assumed, "Because Anbu is addictive and will turn you into a machine?" He nodded.

"I can't speak for other villages but Konoha like ninja with personality." He explained.

"Like Gai." She stated.

"Yes, like Gai and like you." He expanded, "Like the lazy Nara and wilful Yamanaka, the jovial Akamichi and the fierce Inuzuka, the prideful Hyuga, calculative Aburame, or our confident shinobi and temperamental kunoichi." That earned him a rather hard punch to his arm. "And of course our drunken Hokage."

"And a perverted Hatake." She grumbled. An unexpected thought popped into her head. "And the Uchiha?" She wondered. The two took a while to think of the rather emotionless clan.

"Well, they were arrogant." Kakashi shrugged. They shared a look before bursting out in hysterics, or chuckles in his case. It was the strangest thing since it wasn't even that funny. Yet here they were in near unstoppable laughter and gaining questioning and disturbed looks from people around them. Maybe it was a good thing Tsunade had relieved Naru from her duties. And, as sudden as it came, they stopped.

"I can understand wanting to stay there." Naru said picking up the conversation, "It's so much easier."

"It is," Kakashi agreed. Another long silence stretched out and in that time he had abandoned his book in favour of her hand. Smaller and thinner than his own, Kakashi entwined their fingers together.

"I feel like a drug addict going into withdrawal." She said with a sigh.

"That won't do at all." Kakashi admonished, "I heard the reason why Tsunade pulled you out earlier than usual is because she's planning something big."

"Big?" She echoed curiously.

"Mmhm." He looked off nonchalantly into the distance.

"Well what is it?" She was all too familiar with his games and just wanted the answer straight out.

"Sorry, can't say." He made a motion of zipping his mouth. "Classified."

"I'm pretty sure I'm ranked high enough to know." He shook his head. How much higher than Anbu captain could she get? "Dammit Hatake! Why even get me curious if you weren't going to answer?" She pouted at him, and while it wasn't as cute after he had seen literally her rip out a man's heart while he was still breathing, it did look incredibly sexy. And he would have captured those same lips too if it wasn't for his second remaining student to pop up.

"Naru!" Her loud voice, combined with the elemental of surprise, was enough to cause the blonde to jump.

"Sakura!" Naru exclaimed, after landing herself on Kakashi's lap, "What's up?"

"Hope I'm not interrupting." The medic sang. Kakashi gave her a look that told her she definitely was, not that she cared. "But Tsunade-sama requests your presence."

"Huh? What does Baa-chan want?" She reluctantly detached herself from her former sensei and dusted non-existent dust off her pants. "I guess I'll get going then…" She shot Kakashi a wistful look but he just waved her off.

"Don't worry about me and get going. I'll probably be dropping by your apartment tonight anyway." He gave a mischievous wink with his sole uncovered eye and Naru vaguely wondered if that counted as blinking.

"Alright then, I'll see you later." She leaned in and in a practised motion pulled down his mask to place a chaste kiss. Sakura looked at the cute couple from her peripheral vision but quickly got bored as the kiss seemed to deepen and Naru had moved back to straddling the Hatake. She cleared her throat loudly and finally the two lovebirds stopped, both looking slightly messed up. "Right. Baa-chan." Naru remembered. She waved to them both and shunshined into the office, only to get a face full of rainbow streamers and glittery confetti.

"Congratulations!" Shouted her closest friends, who had all been gathered into the room.

"Wha-" She was stunned and it was definitely because of the barrage of bright colours.

"Congratulations gaki," Naru pinpointed Tsunade's voice and turned to face the desk where a large banner stretched across the back wall. The busty blonde pulled out special stamp and slammed it right on the girl's unsuspecting forehead.

"Gah!" She stumbled back at the sheer force and was caught by a smiling Neji. "What the hell was that for, and what is all of this?" She finally asked.

"Here you go." Ino passed her a small pocket mirror so she could clearly see the red-inked words. Naru was torn between cheering and crying, out of joy of course, so she settled for both.

"Yatta!" She pulled the closest person into a tight hug and was soon suffocating Hinata, "I did it! I did it!" Someone managed to tear the poor girl out of her grasp but at the sacrifice of Shino. "Shino! Do you see it?!" She pointed to the red words and he nodded. Who couldn't see it when it was placed in such an obvious area? "Isn't wonderful?!" She was bursting with joy and decided it needed to be shared around. First by giving Shino a dizzyingly kiss, before he was 'saved' and replaced with Hinata once again. Of course that didn't stop her but Hinata did faint, and really no one was safe from an irrational Naru. Kakashi and Sakura chose that moment to coolly walk through the door.

"Should I be jealous?" He asked giving questioning stares around the room. No one replied and the sunny blonde bound up to him, showing off the mark of honour. She then jumped him and Kakashi decided the answer was no.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

Miyu jolted awake in an unfamiliar, traditional-styled room. Where had such a cheerful memory popped out from? If she remembered right that was when Tsunade had declared her as a Hokage candidate, the only candidate, and therefore the one who would succeed her. Miyu stared at the ceiling as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. _Hokage?_ No, she didn't need that. The title wouldn't help her. No, she didn't need it. Power. That was what she was striving for. She closed her eyes again. _That's right, power…_ Kurama watched her from behind his tail, his red eyes shining bright as she fell back into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

"Miyu!" Iruka greeted her and waved her over to the back. "You look beat." He commented when she sat beside him.

"I was training." Miyu answered. She didn't know how he had found out about her change in living arrangements so soon, but Gai had showed up on the Uchiha's doorstep shouting in his usual voice. Thankfully, most people were already up and about.

"Training?" Iruka repeated, "Do you do this every morning?"

"Yeah." She nodded, "Maybe you should join us. I usually spend my mornings with Gai."

"Maito Gai?" Iruka paled slightly, "I'm fine. But I think I will start training myself a bit more."

"Whatever works best for you." She said with a shrug. The rest day was spent in much the same way as her first. A brief lesson, lunch, some demonstrations, and then the ending signal.

"Well I'm out brats!" Saito-sensei declared, finishing his class, "Go home and leave me alone." He left the room and his students began to pack up and leave. Several of them pointed to the new student and Iruka whispering all the while.

"Finally!" The brunette quickly packed away his belongings before stretching out his arms, "I didn't think I was going to last another second."

"Same here." Miyu agreed. Kurama had taken to 'hunting' while she was at school, leaving her rather bored. She didn't want to disrupt Iruka's learning, not that he was focusing much anyway, and ended up doodling on a scrap piece of paper.

"Is that all you did?" Iruka asked seeing her artistic masterpiece. It was such a strange picture but was fairly well drawn. "Why a toad?" He thought girls hated those animals, "With a jacket and pipe?"

"Just felt like it I guess," She shrugged and began scrunching it up only for an arm to stop her. She gave the offender a questioning look.

"Can I keep it?" Iruka asked embarrassed, "I thought it looked pretty good and…" He trailed off mumbling.

"What'd you say? You gotta speak up Iruka." Miyu replied straining her ears. Something about his mum?

"My mum wants me to bring proof whenever I get a friend…" his face was an interesting shade of red.

"Alright then, I guess that's alright." She handed over the wanted paper slightly surprised, "You must have a lot of random items at home."

"Aha…hah…Actually, this'll be this first one." He muttered the last bit too quietly for her to hear. "So," He said louder, "I guess I'll see you again tomorrow?"

"Yeah."

* * *

"So how was your day?" Minato asked when she appeared at training ground 7, "And where did Kurama go?"

"It was fun," she answered, "And he's been spending the day hunting."

"Ah… So, did you make any friends?" He questioned.

"Yep. I made one really good one." Miyu smiled beside him.

"Really," He was relieved she wouldn't be all alone in the Academy, "Who was it?" His mind was already sorting through all the children he had seen which could have been a possibility.

"Iruka!" Her smile widened as she grinned back at him after stopping a few steps ahead.

"Umino Iruka?" He echoed, "As in the prankster?"

"Mmhm." She nodded, confirming the fact.

"And you didn't make any other friends?" He pressed.

"Nope." She popped the 'p' at the end of the word.

"So you made only friends with a troublemaker? Couldn't you have found some better, 'female' company?" He put emphasis on the gender, but didn't want to be too pushy.

"Iruka's great company. He's fun to hang out with." She pouted at him not approving.

"Well I've met his parents and their both respectable ninja." Minato responded, "Can you promise me that you'll make at least one more friend?"

"Okay, I'll try." Miyu nodded, though she didn't really want to get too close with the other kids in her class.

"Good." He glanced over to where Kakashi and Rin were both sparing horizontally on tree trunks. "And how was your first night in the Uchiha compound?" He asked a bit more carefully.

"It was alright." Miyu answered, "Mikoto is nice and a great cook, Itachi doesn't seem to mind me too much and Fugaku has been accepting."

"Hm. Well if you ever want to come back there is always a place for you in the apartment." Minato clapped his hand and the both jumped down panting slightly. Rin looked exhausted but Kakashi was a bit better off, most likely the winning side of their mock fight. "Take a break." Minato gave, both students looking rather thankful.

"Hi there Miyu." Rin greeted with a wave, Kakashi merely giving her a nod of acknowledgement.

"Training hard?" The little girl asked.

"Yeah." Rin replied, "It's been a bit tough these past few days. Anyways, how was the Academy?"

"It was fun. I really like Saito-sensei." Miyu answered cutely.

"I heard he was quite an unorthodox teacher…but a good one nonetheless." Kakashi added. "What did he teach you?"

"A bit about stealth and the uses of a good henge. Then he showed us the hand signs."

"Henge, huh?" Rin pondered over the thought, "Don't you already know it?" the blonde girl nodded in confirmation. "Can we see it?"

"Ok." She shrugged and there was a small 'poof' as a cloud of pink smoke obscured her.

"Kushina? What are you doing here?" Minato asked when he turned to look back at his students after spending a moment away.

"Uh, sensei, that's not Kushina-san." His female student told him, "Miyu was showing us her henge."

"Really?!" he was genuinely surprised, "I know Kushina down to the exact length of each individual, and beautiful, strand of hair. That definitely looks like her to me."

"Always a flatterer." An amused voice said as said woman walked into the clearing. She stopped next to the henged Miyu and gave her a once over. "Damn, I'm hot." She commented.

"Should I repeat my question?" Minato asked.

"Nah, I heard you when I was coming over." His girlfriend replied, "It's nothing important. I just decided to drop by." Miyu release her henge, deciding that it was too confusing with two Kushinas standing there.

"You must be really good." Kakashi praised. Rin was surprised at his compliment but agreed wholeheartedly.

"I know, I couldn't even tell the difference."

"Not in that way," Kakashi clarified, "Didn't you notice she didn't use hand signs?" Rin thought back. Now he said it she had only seen the girl nod before transforming. None of her fingers even twitched.

"She must have fairly good chakra control then." The medic deduced. Miyu stood completely unaware of the conversation due to the fox chatting with her mentally.

**_So I decided to scout around some more today,_** Kurama informed her from wherever he was in the village,**_ there are a lot more ninjas patrolling the area and the guard is tight. _**_Honestly, I'm not surprised,_ she responded. _Did you find anything of interest? __**A couple, it looks like the snake Sannin is still in the village.**_

"Orochimaru." She growled almost inaudibly under her breath.

**_Yes, with his little apprentice too._** _Anko? _She asked. **_Yes, her. Orochimaru, he smelt like rotting corpses but outwardly his façade is nothing but respectful. _**_If I remember correctly he would have already started his human experiments. Hopefully we'll be able to save some less fortunate people from that fate._

"Miyu?" the girl visibly started, jolted out of the conversation she was a bit too immersed in. Minato watched her in concern with Kushina sharing the same expression next to him. "Are you alright?" He continued.

"Yeah, I was just thinking." It looked like Kakashi and Rin had gone back to training, practising some simple water jutsus she could identify.

"Would you like to try it?" Minato asked after following her gaze.

"Can I?" Miyu bounced on the balls of her feet eagerly. This was the perfect chance to 'widen' her ninjutsu arsenal without any questioning.

"Of course." Kushina followed up, "What would you like to learn?"

"What about Mizurappa?" Minato suggested, "It's a pretty basic technique."

"Alright." Kushina agreed, "Well since you apparently have great chakra control this shouldn't be too hard." Miyu agreed it would be easily, but for an entirely different reason. _Where did she hear I had great control from?_ She wondered slightly confused. It didn't help that Kurama had picked up on her more recent thoughts and was snickering in the background. "Well Minato," Kushina shoved her boyfriend over to Kakashi and Rin, "Over there are your students so I'll leave you alone to attend to them. Meanwhile I'll be teaching Miyu the basics of the basics." She ushered Miyu to a more reclusive area before getting down to the 'basics'

* * *

**A/N **Thanks for reading~

And thus her Sharingan was revealed (not the Mangekyo).

I decided that since there probably wouldn't be much Kaka/Naru for a while (they're too young and don't have a reason to see each other much!) I'll try adding him in more flashbacks.

Also getting a feel for slightly (very slightly) power hungry Miyu. This will probably play a pretty big role later on...

I actually find it incredibly hard to show character relationships building. So I hope you can all just assume, due to time spent together (most of which would probably be absent from the story) that they've grown a bit closer. A good example of this would be Gai (seeing as they do train together each morning) and now Kushina as well.

Anyway I'm planning for a timeskip in the next chapter and the beginning of her genin days.

For those who were curious, it's currently late October at the moment, a bit more than two weeks after she arrived (which was on her birthday, October 10)

See you in the next chapter :D


	13. The New Team 7

**A/N** Welcome back!

Yay~ for another chapter and such...

I don't really have anything to clarify or comment on this time so I'll let you guys (and females) get with the reading.

I present Chapter 9 of Tender Sea: Revamped.

* * *

**~Chapter 9 - THE NEW TEAM 7**

"Welcome back." Itachi greeted, much to her surprise, as she dragged herself into the compound.

"Thanks." Miyu ruffled his hair with a smile.

"You look tired," He commented, "And Chichi-ue wants to see you."

"Ah…" Miyu nodded and made a beeline for the lounge. Fugaku was sitting comfortably, reading over some scrolls, possibly written by his subordinates.

"Sit." He motioned to the chair across from him and she settled down. "I heard something interesting yesterday," he began, "You have managed to manifest the Sharingan."

"So it seems." The blonde replied, schooling her expressions.

"Show me." It was a brisk order and she complied. She didn't miss how his breath caught or how his expression changed as it was revealed, "Three tomoes... how much do you know about your eyes?" Fugaku chose to ask after a moment of silence.

"The Sharingan is a kekkai genkai, a dojutsu which in known to appear in the Uchiha clan," Miyu detailed, "It allows the user to see chakra flow and also gives colour to it. That, allows us to differentiate between them and also see if a person is under the influence of a genjutsu. It also gives the user increased clarity of perception. Seeing and reading subtle actions, tracking fast movements, predicting future moves. It can help copy almost any technique I witness, as long as my body has the necessary requirements to preform them, and finally it also has specific hypnotic abilities." She checked off everything she knew.

"That's correct," Fugaku noted with an approving nod, "It seems you know more than I expect."

"I did some research." She replied, not completely untruthful.

"Hn." He sat there contemplatively. Her possession of the Sharingan changed many things. "If you ever need help training them I will be available." Fugaku intoned, "As part of the clan you are granted access to the clan's scrolls. Before there would have been nothing notable for you but we do have some scrolls on the Sharingan if you wish to pursue knowledge."

"Thank you." Miyu was slightly shocked at his hospitality.

"I'm confident you will be able to handle yourself." He continued, "After all you are an Uchiha."

* * *

The week flew by fast. Early mornings with Gai, attending the Academy with Iruka, afternoons with Minato and his team, training with Kushina, and then dinner at the compound before she went to bed, woke up, and repeated it again. No dreaming of past memories, only worrying about the impending doom. She merely trained and trained, trying to get her fragile body into a somewhat reliable state.

"Have a nice day Miyu-chan." An Uchiha named Kazuo stated with a small smile. Beside him was his mostly silent partner. She remembered them as the men who had flanked Ichirou, though it seemed Fugaku had appointed them to escort her instead.

"Hai, I'll see you later then Kazuo-san, you too Jun-san." The shorter haired Jun gave a slight nod before they walked back to the compound. It was a simple job but otherwise created the desired effect. Some other parents and students that had arrived noticed this and took it as a sign she had been properly inducted into the clan.

**_It is effective,_** Kurama commented, choosing to follow her to school today.

"Come one gaki, get in class." Her sensei arrived behind her and dragged the girl in with him. He didn't stop even when he entered their classroom. "We'll be sparring today!" He called out. As soon as they had heard her classmates filed out, apparently used to his behaviour. Needless to say, after several rounds a sparing and a brief amount of time spent on target practice, Miyu could happily say that while her skills had degraded, she was still better than a class of academy students.

* * *

"Hey Miyu, what are you doing?" the brunet she was with looked over her shoulder and focused his attention on the book she held.

"Reading." She replied distractedly.

"I know that…we are in the library after all." Iruka commented sarcastically, "I meant what you're reading." At the moment anything was more interesting than practising hand seals like the girl had suggested.

"…Sealing." Her response was hesitant.

"Sealing? Like how to make explosive tags and stuff?" Her friend remembered back to a particular class.

"Yes. Seals can be very useful and I want to master them." The blonde admitted.

"Really? What can you do with them?"

"What can't you do with them?" A passionate light lit up in her eyes as she put her book down.

**_Careful there._** Kurama warned.

"You can store practically anything which makes it convenient, practical and deadly." Miyu began, "Dead or alive, tangible or not. Hidden weapons, weightless luggage, bottomless pockets, anything. Even Minato's signature jutsu relies heavily on the use of seals."

"Really?...They sounds super useful." Iruka pondered over the thought, "Do you think I could learn to make them?" He asked. After all, if seals were easy there would be more seal masters available.

"Sure, anyone could if they work hard enough," Miyu shrugged, "You just need to be patient and read a lot."

"I don't mind reading." The boy replied. She wondered if she should push him down this path. Seals were a finicky thing and not many knew how to use them. Maybe she would add another to the ranks. From what she had learnt during the first couple of days Iruka did try his hardest in class, it was just he stumbled once in a while and no one was there to correct him as he learnt something wrong, though she'd have to give it to him, when he did learn something wrong he'd learn it well. He was a bit slower on some topics and as Saito-sensei moved on he tried to as well, struggling on the next topic since the first went unfinished. She had found out that just a little input from her now and then helped him go miles. It was if the last piece of a puzzle slid into place in his mind and all of a sudden everything made sense. It was also a plus that he had nice handwriting.

"I'll go find you a beginners book to take home and read," Miyu offered, standing from her seat, "If you have any questions I'll be glad to help."

"That would be awesome." He said sincerely with an award winning grin, "Thanks."

* * *

**2 Months later - Team Assignment Day**

"Great job today!" Gai complimented though the small girl beside him was practically lying on the ground due to exhaustion.

"Hah…thanks…" Miyu panted, perfectly content to stay there until she caught her breath. She still didn't get how the spandex-wearing teen could train so much. Though it only took a moment for her own body to recover and jog back to the compound, parting ways with Gai somewhere in the short journey.

"Welcome back." Itachi greeted, already up as usual. He held Kurama in his arms and together they both made a cute picture, looking slightly rumpled from sleep.

**_Welcome back kit._** The fox yawned a small greeting with his eyes still closed. Miyu patted both their heads fondly before leading them back inside.

"Come have some breakfast you three." Mikoto called from the kitchen. She had already set the table including a bowl on the floor for Kurama. Fugaku was absent, but Miyu had seen him this morning before he left for his rounds. So far she hadn't done anything to displease him, in fact she was something he would be able to take pride in. "To think you'd become Rookie of the Year!" The woman let out a blissful sigh, "I know he doesn't comment but I think Fugaku's delighted." The blonde though that 'delighted' might have been stretching it but…she wouldn't argue with whatever made the woman happy.

"Itadakimasu." The two children called before digging into their food. Itachi finished first. It was surprising that he could eat so fast while still retaining all his table manners. Once done he hurried to find a hair tie before coming back to the table. It was a strange routine that had developed where the young Uchiha would help tie up her hair. It began maybe a month or so back, where she had opted to chop off her overgrown locks instead of tying it up each day. She would have done it to, had Mikoto not stopped her.

Apparently it was, in the woman's words, 'such a waste…' so she had dutifully ordered, for lack of a better word, her son to help his 'onee-san'. Itachi hadn't mind, and he was strangely proficient at braiding it for her. These days she was beginning to think he found it slightly enjoyable. His fingers were quick and deft as they ran through her hair. There's was never any pain besides the slight tugs when he caught a knot.

"Thanks." She praised the boy once he had finished, ruffling his hair much to his discontent.

"It was nothing." He sidestepped out of her reach, and went to go help his mother.

**_Are you ready to go?_** Miyu looked down to see Kurama nudging one of her legs. In the foxes mouth was a hitai-ate, a leaf carved onto the steel which was sewn onto longer-than-average black material.

"As ready as I'll ever be." The girl bent down to pick up the headband, tying it securely around her neck.

* * *

She barely made it in on time, climbing through the window with the fox draped around her shoulders just as Saito-sensei walked in through the door. He gave her a strange look but otherwise disregarded her ruffled appearance. Iruka cheerfully waved her over to her usual seat next to him at the back of the class, startled by her new hair, just like everyone else. "Morning." She sighed flopping down. He bristled in excitement but didn't dare speak when their teacher glared at the two.

"Alright brats, it's nice to see you all have you headbands on." Saito said gruffly, "I'd like to personally welcome you to the ninja world, congratulations." He paused as the passing class cheered. "You might be happy now but keep in mind that we're in a war people, so welcome to the harsh reality of ninja life!" The cheering quietened down and was replaced with nervous glances, "From now we will be appointing you to teams of three, two students and a jounin sensei." He seemed to have caught Miyu's attention with the unusual grouping, "Usually it would be teams of four with three students but while we are in this war the number has been cut down to quickly make more efficient teams. A smaller size is exactly what we need at the moment. It'll make it easier to move around when on a mission. We will be pairing you brats according to your performance in the graduation exam. Remember whoever you're paired with should be around your skill level."

"This war must be quite bad," Miyu sighed softly.

**_Of course it is, but it'll be ending anytime now…_** The fox reassured as Saito began the team announcements.

"Team 1 will be Uchiha Ichirou…" Miyu instantly tuned out as the boy gloated about being on team number one.

**_It looks like they're avoiding teams which have two girls, smart choice. Oh? You're Team 7, like always… it'll be a fun team…_**_ What team? _She thought having missed her name while looking out the window. _I didn't hear it at all. __**You'll just have to wait and see,**_ the fox sniffed haughtily,**_ hopefully this will teach you to be more attentive._**

"Baka-fox," She muttered. She probably could've asked Iruka but he looked busy, scribbling into a worn notebook. She had seen the insides before and frankly she was amazed. Everything he hadn't understood had been broken down and analysed completely, and while for academy notes it might not have been big, when done with jutsus, they could be simplified for pretty much anyone to learn. Saito had left after the announcements, so it was no good trying to find him either. She just hoped her sensei wouldn't be three hours late.

"Team 1?" A lazy voice called. Miyu almost did a double take seeing the lazy strategist walk in but calmed herself as she noticed who it really was, "I'm Nara Shikaku, you're jounin sensei, follow me." He had some bandages across the right of his face so she assumed he was absent from the frontlines due to injury. After an unknown jounin came for team two Shikaku's usual teammates also came to pick up a team. The fact the Inoichi was a man and Choza had bright red hair meant she didn't confuse them with their future children.

"Team 5." Said another unknown ninja, picking up her students. As she left there was some gloomy footsteps as the next ninja walked in.

"Team 6?" A familiar, red-haired woman appeared, dressed in the standard jounin uniform. She seemed slightly depressed and moody, Miyu couldn't help but wonder why.

"Kushina-neechan, what's wrong?" She decided to ask. The woman instantly turned on her with comical tears.

"That damn Sarutobi already decided on the team placements so now I have to train some bratty kids and I can't even have you!" Her team was a little annoyed that they had been referred to as bratty but wisely kept silent.

"There, there." Miyu comforted patting the woman's back. Iruka gave her a confused look but she would explain the mysterious lady later.

"Damn you Hyuga-teme!" Kushina shouted in despair. Miyu was fairly confused by her outcry, wondering what a Hyuga could've done to make the woman that emotional. Kurama chuckled in the back of her mind while outwardly lazing on the desk, obviously knowing the reason.

"Team 7." A deep voice called, interrupting Kushina's pity party. She quickly turned and growled ferally at him. A tall man with long, brown hair looked at her blankly with pale, pupiless eyes. "Meet me at training ground 7 in five minutes." He disappeared in a swirl of leaves while both students raced to get there in time, seeing as it was at least a fifteen minute walk away. Kushina herself walked dejectedly out of the classroom with her students following along.

* * *

"That was…hah…surprising…" Iruka panted as they reached the training grounds. Miyu was in a similar state but was happy to have made it in time. They had dashed straight from the classroom and probably set the record of three minutes and a couple of seconds.

"This is a pleasant surprise." The Hyuga male said with a ghost of a smile, "You both ran? And got here on time?" Each student nodded. "I'm beginning to expect great things from you two."

"Hai! Please take care of us, Sensei!" Both students saluted with silly grins and bowed.

"Well let's go through some quick introductions. I am Hyuga Hizashi your jounin sensei," Miyu blinked in recognition, so this was Neji's father then? "I'm currently absent from the battlefield due to the birth of my son." He gave Iruka a look to go next.

"Nice to meet you, my name's Umino Iruka!" He greeted mostly towards his new sensei rather than his friend who already knew, "I'm 9 years old and it's my dream to protect this village like my parents."

"Konichiwa , I am Namikaze Miyu and I turned 8 in October." It also happened to be the day she had slipped into the past. "And this is my partner Kurama." Hizashi looked at her thoughtfully. Also wondering how the fox managed to make it here on time.

"So this must be the Uchiha Namikaze Uzumaki child I heard about." Their sensei scrutinized her form as she spoke, "It's quite amazing to find all three differing bloods rolled into one. I'm glad Minato and Kushina have found some long lost relative though I wish you weren't an Uchiha." His tone was light and cheerful leading her to believe maybe the clan rivalry wasn't too bad after all.

**_We can only hope._** Kurama yipped from beside her.

"It's been a long time since we've had a kunoichi as the rookie of the year. You might have inherited not just their blood, but talent as well." Hizashi continued, "And you Iruka-kun, it'll be interesting to see the boy who rose so quickly from the bottom in just a couple of months." The brunet blushed happily, thankful his grades had been pulled up. "Undoubtedly a hard worker." Iruka shot Miyu a thankful and proud look. It was all the time they spent studying or training together that had led to his 'level up'.

"Alright," Hizashi clapped his hands to get their attention, "Even though you've graduated you aren't exactly genins yet."

"What do you mean, Sensei?" Iruka questioned confused though Miyu had fully expected this.

"There's one more test academy graduates are required to complete if they want to stay ninjas. Otherwise it's back to academy if you still want to try again." Hizashi explained.

"What is it?!" Iruka asked excitedly, eager to prove his worth.

"Well originally I was going to try the bell test, but it seems Kushina has claimed that one this time," He seemed to be thinking up one on the spot, not noticing the little girl perk up as her former test was mentioned, "I don't feel like playing hide and seek with you two to test your tracking skills either…let's just spar then. If you can score one hit each you pass." He shot a calm and disarming smile towards them, but Miyu was on red alert.

"Iruka, we've got to be careful," She tugged on his sleeve to get attention, something their sensei didn't miss, "This will be difficult."

"Why?" He replied confused. Kurama thumped the boy on the leg with his tail.

"You can't be serious." His face remained confused and Miyu sighed, "If you would Kurama." The fox simply pulled out an item too large to have been in his fur, amazing Hizashi. He then tossed it to the boy, catching him unaware as it slapped into his face.

"Guide to dojutsu?" Iruka read aloud. The Hyuga was surprised yet again, had the girl been looking through dojutsu?

"Page 32." Miyu commanded. Instantly Iruka sat down, cross-legged as he flipped to the correct page and immersed himself in learning.

"I was told you two had a strange relationship, I guess it's true." Their sensei noted.

"Strange?" Miyu echoed.

"For a nine year old boy to obediently listen to a girl younger than him," Hizashi explained, "Usually they'd be in their rebellious stage, too overconfident and outgoing to simply sit and read." He pointed to the sitting boy and chuckled, "Maybe you could say he's been tamed." The fox snorted in agreement.

"Tamed? In the first place Iruka wasn't that wild… aside from a couple of pranks. But we've been studying a lot at the library so he created a sort of study mode." She explained, gesturing towards the now quiet boy, "And he trust I wouldn't give him a useless book." Hizashi hummed in thought. Despite her young appearance, she spoke and acted much older. "Regardless, Iruka will be a great ninja no matter what," She stated confidently. The boy in question would've blushed if he weren't so immersed in reading, "I just wanted to help."

"Hmm." Hizashi noted some suspicious chakra signatures nearby. He wasn't the only one seeing how Miyu had turned to look around, something he definitely noticed.

"Done!" Iruka chirped standing up. He handed the book back to the fox and pointed proudly at Hizashi, "You almost fooled me but now I know all about the Byakugan…or at least what was written in the book!" Hizashi raised a single brow in response watching as the boy suddenly stated and began looking around. "Uh, Miyu? Is there someone else here, somewhere around the trees over there?" Both the girl and her teacher were surprised at his accuracy.

**_The boy has talent in becoming a sensory ninja,_** the fox commented,**_ maybe you can push him to go farther than his other self. _**_That's the idea._ She reminded the fox.

"Can you elaborate?" Hizashi asked curiously.

"Yeah, there are three chakra sources over there. Two are pretty small while the third is really big." Iruka pointed at their rough positions.

"You're getting really good with this chakra sensing thing you do." Miyu complimented with the Hyuga nodding in agreement.

"True, but for now let's ignore them and start our own test," Hizashi activated the Hyuga's signature jutsu, shown as the veins near his temple bulged. He gave them both a once over, staring at Miyu for a good while longer, before sliding into his stance, "I'll be mostly judging you on your taijutsu, whenever you're ready."

"Kurama, sit this one out for now." Miyu commanded. The fox nodded and padded a short distance away. "Iruka, try to aim for the back on his neck." Miyu said quietly enough for their teacher not to hear them. The boy nodded and slid into his own stance, an improvised and ever growing version of the basic academy style. "I'll create an opening and you can go for it." He nodded as she suddenly disappeared from sight, signalling the start of their assault.

"Hm?" Hizashi quickly raised his arm and blocked what looked like a dropkick. He felt the unusual heaviness of the attack and slid back a couple of centimetres. "Good strength," He turned slightly and brought an arm to block the incoming Iruka. Seeing he had lost his opportunity the boy jumped back and watched for another opening, "Smart move." Miyu quickly twisted herself around and launched a barrage of fast strikes. All aimed for his vitals he noticed. He felt Iruka sneaking up on him once again and blocked another jab, grabbing a thin wrist while he was at it, and sweeping Miyu's front leg off the ground before throwing her at her teammate. Kurama snort in amusement as the boy went down under her.

"Nng," Miyu rolled off Iruka with a grunted apology and set herself back on her feet. She was a bit put off he had thrown her so easily.

**_It's because you're tiny… _**She growled at the fox, who had knowingly hit a sensitive subject. _I'm not a midget!__** I said you were tiny, not a midget, though…**_ The fox yipped in laughter. She chose to ignore him this time around and once again launched herself at her new teacher. He was as prepared as she expected and easily began countering her strikes. Iruka carefully circled around, looking for an opening as he edged closer. They blocked and parried each other's strikes and Hizashi momentarily forgot about his other student. By the time he sensed him coming in he was late to react and got caught with a nasty blow to the shoulder which he retaliated with a punch in the offender's gut. He was caught by a harsh punch to his side from his other student and he was quick to react by kicking her back. He stepped out of their range and scowled slightly knowing that he was going to be getting a pair of new bruises. With their goal accomplished, both genins jumped back a safe distance to check their own injuries. Iruka with a hand over his stomach and a grimace on his face, and Miyu dusting off a foot print on the side of her shirt.

"Honestly I'm surprised." Hizashi told them, "I didn't expect a pair of freshly minted genin to actually land a blow. Good job, you pass." Both students instantly relaxed and hive fived each other wincing as they felt their own oncoming bruises.

**_I don't know about Iruka but I'm sure that bruise will be gone within the hour._** Kurama added. Miyu hadn't heard him, too caught up in her most recent achievement.

"Yeah!" Both students cheered enthusiastically. He allowed them their moment, marvelling at the ease they each fell into their own team role. That sort of teamwork could only come from having trained together.

"It seemed you quickly came up with a plan," Hizashi analysed, "Which involved using Miyu as a distraction, and went headfirst into the battle. You both also seem to have a tight grasp on the basics and have a fairly good amount of strength, something that initially caught me off guard. In the end as long as you both showed adequate teamwork I would have passed you." They smiled brightly at him, obviously pleased with themselves. "As far as I can see, Miyu would be the leader in this case but it also seems like she takes the harsher roles like directly confronting me to give you a chance, Iruka. At the same time you seem to have unwavering trust in her and follow her orders to the best of your abilities." Hizashi rubbed the back of his neck unconsciously, "Was there a particular reason why you aimed for the back of my neck?" he asked the boy.

"I just did as Miyu asked," Iruka answered. Hizashi nodded and shrugged it off.

"Well it doesn't matter that much in the end. Anyway with my Byakugan I was able to examine your chakra levels during the fight. Iruka, you have more chakra than I expected, somewhere in the high genin to low chuunin mark. While Miyu, you seem to have an outrageously large amount for a freshly minted genin, maybe in the high chuunin levels. It seems like your fox has somehow developed chakra coils as well, which is strange, but not impossible. Maybe it can learn some handy skills." While he contemplated the thought a figure jumped down from the tree with two children over her shoulders.

"Haha! You lost!" Kushina shouted at Hizashi's slightly amused face.

"That I did, and now I have a pair of cute students." Though his voice was kept monotonous both students looked happy with the comments, though Iruka being a boy would deny this. "I can tell it won't be the same for you," He looked at the unconscious genins she carried. It new knowledge in the new Team 7 that Kushina and her two genins were probably the chakra signature hidden in the trees, though it was an unspoken fact that it wasn't nearly enough time for her to have adequately tested her students.

"Of course! No brat's are going to beat me any time soon." She replied confidently. Iruka blushed slightly looking up at the pretty lady.

"Um, was there a reason you were watching us?" he asked nervously.

"I needed to make sure my little Miyu was safe." She sent waves of her love at the blonde girl and glared at the Hyuga, "If only I could've been her sensei."

"Who is she?" The scarred boy asked his friend.

"That's Uzumaki Kushina, Minato's girlfriend." Miyu explained, while he finally nodded in understanding.

"So she'll like your aunt then?" he asked innocently.

"So it seems," Hizashi interrupted, "I need to inform Hokage-sama of the new team. You should probably do the same, Kushina." Hizashi told his comrade before turning to his students, "From tomorrow onwards Team 7 is to meet here at 6:00am sharp."

"Hai, Hizashi-sensei!" The students called back. He chuckled softly to himself, maybe a genin team wouldn't be too bad.

* * *

**A/N** Thank you for reading~

So Fugaku gets to be all up in any doubter's face with his Sharingan-wielding daughter... (That's an awkward sentence to right...)

Miyu in this story does not cut off her 'Long, Glorious, Golden Hair'. Instead it serves to prompt sibling relationships. (I figured Itachi would be pretty good with ...anything...a prodigy through and through ahahaha)

She's back on Team 7, for the sake of sentimentality and tradition...and she gets Hizashi as her sensei. Reason being...I don't quite know but it happened...

Anyway, I'll see you people next time :D


	14. Seal Masters

**A/N** Well...this is pretty late...

I'd like to apologize for anyone that's been awaiting chapters...but it probably won't change for the next few months. I'm actually tempted be on hiatus for the rest of the year but decided I probably shouldn't (I could squeeze out a couple of chapters here and there...)

Yeah, I'm busy due to school...I should probably study more but I can't bring myself to do so...

Anyway, you might as well get reading since you've waited a while anyway... (By the way, am i the only one who thinks recent followers have it lucky since they get a new chapter almost right away?)

* * *

**~Chapter 10 - SEAL MASTERS**

"So how was it?" Sarutobi asked as this year's jounin senseis lines up before him. Honestly he expected most if not all of them would fail, but lowering the graduation level gave each student more chances and those that were good enough to pass wouldn't be held back.

"Team 1, failed." Shikaku announced.

"Same here." echoed all the other jounins except for one. They all had matching, bored expressions and wanted to be back on the field fighting for their village as soon as possible. So they chose to stare at their comrade who had yet to voice his opinions.

"Team 7, passed." Hizashi spoke with a smile in his voice.

"You didn't go easy on them, right?" the Nara asked with a hint of disbelief.

"I didn't." They could tell he wasn't going to elaborate unless they continued to ask.

"Who did you have?" Chouza asked.

"Umino Iruka and Uchiha Miyu." Hizashi answered.

"Don't forget Uzumaki!" Kushina called, "Or Namikaze." She added as an afterthought.

"I know Iruka's from an average ninja family but that Miyu kid…" Shikaku thought back, "She's the one Minato discovered right? The amnesiac that became Rookie of the Year."

"They must be fairly skilled." A nameless jounin wondered.

"I think so at least." Hizashi confirmed. "They managed to past my test after all."

"And what was your test?" Inoichi inquired curiously.

"A simple spar."

"Then they must have showed enough team work to pass." Someone added.

"Oh, and then some," Hizashi clarified, "They managed to get a couple of good hits in after all." He lifted up part of his clothing to show the bruise on the side of his abdomen."

"One of the managed to hit you?" Chouza voiced with slight disbelief.

"They both did." He wasn't ashamed at all. In fact he was proud they manage to get him, even if he hadn't been fighting at his best.

"Of course they would!" Kushina shouted proudly, "Miyu's already got the basics down pat and I'm guessing Iruka has as well."

"Hm." The Hokage sat back thoughtfully, listening to the discussion in front of him. "Well, it seems that despite what we thought we have a couple of newbie genin." His words ended whatever the others wished to say, "That's all there is to it. Feel free to leave, you're dismissed, you probably want to get back to your families." The Hokage allowed them to return while Hizashi stayed in his office. "Is there something else you wanted to talk about, Hizashi-san?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama," The Hyuga confirmed, "Today I spared with my genin and noticed, with the Byakugan, that Miyu seems to have some unnatural chakra. Though both she and Iruka have high levels for academy graduates her chakra coils seems reinforced in preparation for something I can only guess about and for some reason their seems to be a foreign chakra source around her stomach. To make it more confusing her partner, that fox, also has quite a developed chakra system and its chakra is similar to the foreign one within her." Sarutobi took a moment to think. Konoha's newest resident was still a mystery even after 2 months.

"I've had reports from her time at the hospital and it seems she has some sort of seal on her stomach." The Hokage informed, "We don't know anything about the ninja that brought her up other than their assumed efficiency, and what you've told me is interesting and unusual. I've already called Jiraiya back to look at the seal, which might the reason for her altered coils."

"Seals really can do about anything." Hizashi added wryly. Sarutobi gave him a rather sad smile.

"I'll relay the information you've given to Jiraiya and once he figures out the seal I'll tell you the result. But for now I assume what you saw wasn't bad?"

"It's more of an advantage," Hizashi explained, "like having a spare store of chakra for Miyu. And if that fox could learn to perform jutsu… they would become very powerful."

"I agree." Sarutobi said, "But until Jiraiya comes we can't be sure of what has caused the anomaly in her chakra system."

"Could Minato possible check the seal?" The Hyuga suggested. Sarutobi seemed to be struck with a realization.

"I had completely forgotten about his skills," The old man berated himself, "I vaguely remember asking him but it seems like we both forgot with everything happening. Bear!" An Anbu popped into the room right beside Hizashi.

"Hai, Hokage-sama?" The rather bulky ninja asked.

"Get Minato Namikaze for me." With a single nod the ninja disappeared. "I'll get him to do it right now, and then Jiraiya can give his opinion after."

* * *

"So what did you need me for?" Miyu questioned, tilting her head to the side.

"Ah, Minato-sensei said to go buy you a graduation gift." A monotonous voice responded, "Rin was supposed to come as well but she's needed at the hospital.

"Aren't these things meant to be a surprise?" The blonde chirped, skipping around the silver haired boy.

"I have no idea what you'd want so I'll just pay for anything you decide to buy." Kakashi responded with a shrug. He was honestly surprised that she and her teammate had passed the actual exam. He eyed the girl curiously, not noticing the pair of red eyes that in turn, watched him.

"…Anything?" The girl said quietly. The prodigy jounin nodded, albeit warily as he observed her mood change. "Then…"

* * *

"Wah~!" Miyu looked around the store in wonder, "Isn't this awesome Kurama?" The orange fox nodded in agreement. The shop was one of Konoha's main arms supplies, run by Tenten's family if she remembered correctly. It was fairly large with weapons lining the walls along with armour and other ninja tools lying on tables and shelves.

**_Be careful Miyu._** Kurama warned as he saw the girl bounce around the store filled with pointy objects. Kakashi absentmindedly browsed the selection of shuriken nearby while also keeping an eye out for any dangers.

"Hrm? Customers?" A very tall and muscled man asked. He had to duck slightly as he came into the main part of the shop from a small doorway behind the desk.

"Ah, Higurashi-san, good afternoon." Kakashi greeted politely.

"So, what brings you here today Kakashi?" The man asked, "And who's the girl you brought with you?" He pointed to the girl who was examining the smaller blades quietly. Every now and then she would turn to the fox by her side, as if asking for advice.

"I'm just here to pay for anything she selects." He shrugged, "A graduation gift."

"Graduation?" She looked a little young, after all he heard most of the academy students were pretty much set to fail.

"She looks familiar... is this Minato's niece?" The store owner asked, thinking back to one of his particularly chatty customers.

"Yes." Meanwhile Miyu had taken to examining blades and swords, trying to find one to her liking.

"What are you looking for?" Kakashi asked walking over to her with Higurashi in tow.

"I thought a katana would be nice but I'm a little too short right now," She commented with a wry smile, "So I decided to take a look at the tantos."

"Is there anything specific you want?" Higurashi asked curiously.

"Maybe a Kanmuri-otoshi." Miyu replied, completely focused on the different weapons. Kakashi blinked at the uncommon word, especially for one not in the blacksmith industry. He turned to Higurashi for an explanation.

"It's a type of tanto, medium sized with a single edge and flat back." Higurashi replied thoughtfully, "The girl knows her stuff. Tell me a bit more of what you're looking for." He encouraged with an interested look.

"For now I just wanted something to practice with. Otherwise I'd probably be asking for chakra conductive metal." She answered simply. Beyond the shelves of weapons she could see a back room with a semi-refined strip of metal sitting on it. She would recognize it anywhere, even if it had not yet become a blade. She sighed and vaguely detailed her wants. Kakashi hadn't missed the longing in her eyes and turned to look at what had caught her attention. Surprisingly enough to him, it was one of Higurashi's current projects.

"Then this should do for now." The gruff man dropped a handful of tantos into her arms and the silver-haired boy briefly wondered what he had missed, and more importantly, how many she had ordered.

"Arigatou!" Miyu chirped with a bright smile.

"You're welcome." The owner smiled back, hoping he would soon be getting another faithful and interesting customer, "Now go find someone to teach you and make my store famous!" He laughed heartily at her determined salute before watching the girl dash out of the store. "Now," He turned to Kakashi who had stood by watching, "You said you would be paying?"

"H-hai." He pulled out the money, thankful Minato seemed fond of doting on his niece, and payed the high expenses. "If you don't mind me asking, what are you making at the moment?" He asked, indicating to the work bench.

"Oh, a tanto." Higurashi answered, "A Kanmuri-otoshi just like the ones the girl had asked for. Chakra conducting metal and all."

"Really?" He wouldn't dwell on the thought too much but wondered if the girl's stare was something more…

"Hm, it's more of a trail than anything else. I've decided on trying something a bit new but at the rate I'm going it won't be done anytime soon."

"Ah." He stored the information away for whenever he might need it.

"What's with the sudden interest?" The man asked, "You finally feel like getting another weapon? I mean shuriken and kunai are nice an all but it's always nice to have something to fall back on."

"No, I was just curious." He stated monotonously.

"If this is about your father's tanto I won't be able to fix it. Not unless I can fine the same material." His tone was sombre, a broken weapon, more accurately one he had forged, hit him hard.

"I expected as much." Kakashi sighed.

* * *

"Welcome home…" Itachi curiously eyed the four tantos his sister had strapped to her waist, three on the left and one slightly longer one on the right side.

"Sorry if I made you wait," She said ruffling his hair, "I got a little caught up."

"It's fine." He stated stoically, "Uzumaki-san and Namikaze-san are present and waiting for you in the kitchen." The boy informed.

"Ah, really? I wonder why?" Kurama, too lazy too even walk, had already jumped into Itachi's small arms, "It seems that training session we were going to have will have to wait." Walking into the house she was greeted by Kushina's fierce hug and Minato's sheepish expression

"It's been too long!" Kushina whined.

"I saw you this afternoon, Kushina-nee." Miyu responded in a muffled voice.

"Don't suffocate my only daughter." Mikoto called with a light chuckle. Reluctantly, Kushina obliged and detached herself.

"Are you here for a specific reason?" Miyu wondered.

"Ah, yeah." Minato was the one to reply, "The Hokage reminded me that I have yet to look at your seal and said it would be in my best interest to check it before I forgot again."

"Seal?" Heads turned to see Fugaku standing at the doorway, "What do you mean?"

"In the hospital report there was a mention of seal on her abdomen." The blond jounin replied informatively.

"And? What does it do?" The Uchiha head pressed.

"That's what I'm supposed to find out." The blond gave him a small glare. He turned back to the girl, "I hope you don't mind."

"…not at all." She resigned herself to her approaching fate.

**_It seems something like this was unavoidable._** Kurama commented calmly, obviously having thought about the situation before.**_ You can't actually stop him. But the seal doesn't exist right now since it was created by him. The arrangement will undoubtedly confuse him, though he isn't a seal master for nothing so he'll eventually figure it out…_**_ Then what?!_ He gave the animal equivalent of a shrug, not reassuring her in the least. Meanwhile, Minato took her stiff form as fear.

"I promise it won't hurt." He said softly, "I just need to look at the pattern." She shifted nervously on the spot. It wasn't like she could hide it since the nurse and thus the hospital knew about it. In the end the blue eyed girl nodded reluctantly, lifting her shirt up just enough for him to see the seal. In an instant he had brush in hand as he quickly copied down the pattern. His calligraphy was flawless and each of his strokes were done elegantly. "And that's it." He finished with a final flick of his brush. Miyu let her shirt fall back down as the blond began to analyse the seal. "It looks familiar, but I'm certain I've never seen anything as complex as this." He muttered under his breath. The others in the room peered closer but had little chance of recognising the patterns of ink. It was only Kushina's widening eyes that caught her attention.

"This…!" Her voice was low and almost inaudible.

**_You know, apparently Minato based the Hakke no Fuin off the seal Kushina had._** The fox explained, **_if that is so, then it wouldn't be strange for her to recognize it…_** Miyu couldn't do anything else than sit back and watch. It seemed that they were destined to decipher the seal, and if that was the case, she was fairly sure she could come up with a lie more believable than time travelling and a second Kyuubi. Then again she could always plead ignorance.

"Do you recognize it?" Minato looked back eagerly.

"But it can't be…"

"Can't be what?" Mikoto asked, she hadn't been worried initially, but her friend's reaction told her something was wrong.

"That's a classic Uzumaki sealing technique. It looks like it was modified to strengthen and fortify it, I'm not sure what else but…" Kushina trailed off again.

"But?" The Namikaze pressed. She sighed and spoke quietly, only meant for his ears.

"Sealing a demon…You must remember the Shisho Fuin." Kurama picked up her words and relayed it back to his partner.

**_They know._** He added,**_ not much, but enough. _**Miyu seemed to notice the worried glances Minato seemed to be shooting her while Kushina tried to unravel the mystery of the seal.

* * *

"So why did you call me here again?" A kimono clad man with long, spiky, white hair tapped his foot impatiently waiting for a reply. "I have my networks to maintain, y'know?"

"My apologies, Jiraiya," Sarutobi apologized, "It was a moment of senility on my part. I still can't believe I forgot about Minato… but still, it would probably be best for you to hear about the findings." The Hokage advised.

"What exactly was it?" He asked curiously as he was handed a parchment with the neatly copied seal on it. His brow furrowed as he tried to analyse the deceptively simple looking design.

"I received that from Minato not long ago. He rushed it to me as soon as he could along with some concerning information." The elderly man sighed tiredly. "You've heard about the young girl we found a not long ago who turned out to be his niece correct?"

"Yeah, found with impossible injuries, heals without a scar, has a pet fox and is apparently of Uchiha and Uzumaki blood." Jiraiya listed off. He had yet to meet her and would have to make time to do so.

"The very same one," Sarutobi confirmed, "That seal was found on her abdomen."

"It looks familiar…kind of like the Uzumaki seals." The sage commented, "What exactly does it do?"

"You're right when you say it's similar to an Uzumaki seal, more specifically the Shisho Fuin Kushina has." He paused letting his last sentence sink in.

"The seal used for the nine tailed fox?" he kept his tone serious and narrowed his eyes. Looking closely he could pick out different elements here and there. It seemed to be a double of the preceding seal with the purpose at being twice as efficient at sealing something away and allowing access to it. Sarutobi nodded grimly in response. "And what exactly does it do? Has Konoha somehow managed to get its hands on another Jinchuriki?" It was unlikely since his spies had accounted for all the existing tailed beasts, but nothing was ever impossible.

"It's a strange thing," His old teacher began, "As far as I know she doesn't have a tailed beast sealed in her. Instead the seal seems to house a large amount of foreign chakra. That is, a very large amount," He stressed, "It also links her to her fox possibly giving the animal the ability to perform jutsu but we have yet to test that particular theory out." Jiraiya noted down the facts, making the girl more and more fascinating to him.

"Can I meet her?" He asked, "Or do you need me back out on the field?"

"I think the meeting can wait," Sarutobi decided, "Right now I have an important scroll I need delivered to Amegakure."

"I'll finally be able to see those three again then, huh?" Jiraiya smiled lightly, "The alliance will definitely help us out, though I wonder what's in it for them?"

"We can only wonder, but during this war I'll take any help that's offered." The Hokage handed over the precious document which the sage accepted with a brief nod before jumping out of the window and disappearing from sight.

* * *

**1 month later – Dark alleyway within Konoha**

"Iruka!" Miyu collapsed on the floor holding a red stain on her side. Kurama lay unmoving beside her. "Go on without me, you must finish the mission!" She coughed and the boy's eyes widened at the red that also appeared on her hand.

"But-" He stuttered clutching the important scroll to his chest.

"Sensei, stayed behind to hold them back and in this state I will only slow you down," She gritted out, "I will stay here…with Kurama." She pulled out an ominous tag. "If I see any of the enemies come pass I'll just have to take them out with me!" Iruka felt a few foolish tears slide down his face.

"I will make you both proud so please, live!" He dashed off, hearing a sudden explosion and the warmth of fire behind him. The target wasn't that far off and all he had to do was hand them the scroll. He dodged to the left, seeing a dozed shuriken strike his previous position. Pushing his legs to their limit he dashed into a small alley way as a shortcut and finally came up to the large red doors of the Hokage tower. It would be too slow to enter via the reception and he could be putting other in risk so the boy scaled the walls and jumped through the window, tumbling as he fell. Behind him came a couple of kunai, one nicking his arm and the other clattering on the floor.

"What is the meaning of this?!" The elderly leader shouted in alarm.

"Hokage-sama," Iruka panted, "I've brought the scroll." He quickly passed it to Sarutobi who opened it warily.

"Team 7, has successfully completed their mission," He read aloud with growing irritation, "Signed Mr Fujimoto. If I remember correctly you were just weeding his garden… how did this happen." He gestured to the messy state Iruka was in, cut up in a couple of places and wearing torn and singed clothes.

"W-well…" The boy fidgeted under his unwavering gaze.

"I can explain that, Hokage-sama," Hizashi appeared in perfect condition, a smoky and red-stained Miyu at his side. **_That was quite fun._** The fox yipped in her mind while climbing up to her shoulders.

"Good job Iruka!" She praised.

"Back to the point," Hizashi cleared his throat, "We've already had a month of missions and they were getting a little bored, so why not turn these D-ranks into harder missions with different scenarios? I wasn't really sure what we could do with weeding a garden so I made the trip back here a mission for Iruka. The scenario was that I stayed back to hold off the enemy, who were after the scroll, whole Miyu and Iruka escaped. From there I played the enemy and sent projectiles at them from a range of different directions. Miyu then played the comrade who falls in the line of duty and chooses to die taking as many down as she can with her. Then Iruka, distraught with the loss of his team must strive to reach his objective, you Hokage-sama."

"You're a really good actor, Iruka," Miyu complimented, "For a moment when we were talking you almost convinced me that I was actually dying."

"Ah it's nothing," The boy accepted modestly.

"Will it be like this every time?" The Hokage sighed, looking at the mess in his office. The three nodded seriously in reply, "You've worked hard and turned in 46 D-ranks during this month I think I can let you off with a couple of C-ranks now and then, so please don't panic the citizens with your antics."

"Hai Hokage-sama." Hizashi replied.

* * *

"And that," their sensei said proudly as they entered training ground 7, "Is how you get higher ranked missions."

"By threatening to throw civilians into panic?" Iruka wondered, "Why couldn't we just ask?"

"Where would the fun be in that?" Miyu answered, "Plus Jiji must have been getting bored with all the paperwork. We were a good break." Her team had already come to understand that her nicknames where some sort of sign of respect, though watching a young girl disrespect the most powerful ninja in the village, right to his face was still nerve-wracking.

"It looks like we might be getting higher ranked missions from tomorrow onwards but for now let's train." Hizashi walked the two to a small river that cut through the grounds. "Iruka, you'll be continuing where we left of yesterday, and Miyu, you'll be sparing with me." The brunette muttered unhappily and stripped to his boxers revealing a fit young body. He had been working on trying to gain muscle mass but as a child it was a slow process. He had already gotten rid of any embarrassment he felt between his team and took an unsteady step on top of the water. Once he got to the middle Kurama jumped and landed neatly on his head, before pawing and trying to distract the poor boy. Meanwhile his owner had already begun exchanging strikes with her teacher. It was probably for the best that her teacher specialised in taijutsu seeing as it was one of the things she struggled the most in.

"Hah!" She executed a revamped version of the Konoha Senpuu, launching a high kick then a low spinning kick and then following through with a round house kick. Her teacher fended them all off and returned with a couple well aimed strikes she barely dodged. **_The sparring you do with the Hyuga has helped regained sense of your body,_** the fox said while sitting on Iruka's head. His tail swished back and forth before the boy's nose, **_so now you should endeavour to push yourself further. Taijutsu was never one of your strong points._**

"Ah-AHCHOO!" Iruka's sneeze was followed by a loud splash as he fell in. Kurama yipped his laughter out, staying on the surface by his own skill.

"Pay attention Miyu," Hizashi caught her in a moment of distraction and sent her sprawling onto the ground. "If you weren't a kunoichi I'd have qualms about injuring such a cute girl, but…" He sighed dramatically. She had never known him in her time but here Miyu knew Hizashi to be somewhat out of the norm for a Hyuga.

"It's fine, as a ninja I'm expecting to get a few battle scars anyway," She smiled almost in longing. Back in her old time no matter how many battles she had gone through her body was never marred, a fact which left her surprisingly saddened. Though they were her enemies, she had faced off against good ninja, and she thought it was an insult towards them if her body didn't show the damage done. She placed her hand over her heart, remembering the only scar she received.

"Has anyone told you that you're a strange girl?" Her sensei rubbed the back of his head and helped her up before going to check on his other student. Iruka had his face scrunched up in concentration as he jumped up and down, staying above the water this time.

"Yeah, a couple." Kurama snickered in her mind while walking up to meet them.

"Right," Hizashi clapped his hands for their attention, "Iruka, take a small break. You'll be sparing with Miyu next." The boy looked torn between cheering and groaning. He could finally get off the early winter-chilled water, but at the sake of some bad bruising from a younger girl. He stayed indecisive as he walked off the river and redressed himself watching Miyu in the middle of some stretches before deciding to do some as well. Hizashi couldn't have been happier as he watched his two students. They learned fast, didn't act like brats and respected him. Even if the Hokage had forced him to take on students at least he could say teaching them was a joy. "Alright then," He had their attention almost immediately and smiled lightly at the kids, "Let's hurry and start sparring. Then we'll work on more chakra control and finally jutsus to finish up. The Hyuga indicated at a sturdy tree and both students gathered chakra in their feet before walking up. Facing each other on the vertical surface they were given the signal to begin.

* * *

**A/N** Thanks for reading :)

So, not sure if I've mentioned anything like this yet but, Naru, having grown till nineteen in the times of war, was very proficient at using weapons. So much so she could be counted as a weapons mistress (But specialises in a certain few and is still below Tenten's level of mastery).

In general she stays away from heavy weapons such as axes, clubs and finicky types like bows and whips. She is proficient in most forms of Bojutsu (in memory of Sarutobi Hiruzen), including three-sectioned staffs and spears. Her taijutsu is usually accompanied by a pair of jutte or tonfa and to some extent tessen.  
While apprenticed under Kakashi she became skilled at the use of a Tanto and at some point in time after Shikamaru's death (...yeah, I'm gonna need a flashback of intense sadness for that...) she picked up Asuma's chakra blades and was practically a natural. After Sasuke's death she also acquired his chokuto and for a point in time it was her primary weapon after her original one (I wonder what it could be :D?) was destroyed.  
She always had a fondness for swords. (Also, proficiency means she is around average with a weapon. definitely not comparable to a learned master)

Most of this won't even be relevant beside the fact she 'can' use weapons (most of the time not nearly well enough to make them available choice in a tough battle) but throughout the story she'll be picking up kenjutsu (if the four tantos weren't already an indication.)

Anyway, part of the seal has been revealed and Jiraiya's made a small appearance.

It's now around late January-early Februrary and a lot of Konoha wives are now pregnant...

Well, I'll see you readers next time...whenever that may be...


	15. Sunrise, Sunset, Departure

**A/N** S'up

Welcome back to the newest chapter of Tender Sea: Revamped.

First and foremost I'd like to thank you all for being patient when dealing with my slow updates and such.

There are only about 2-3 chapters before this overtakes the rewrite, meaning the story will be back on track :D

I'd rather not keep you from the fic so have fun with the next chapter~

* * *

**~Chapter 11 - SUNRISE,SUNSET, DEPARTURES**

"Konichiwa~" Miyu called as she entered the familiar apartment. Walking to the kitchen, she opened the cupboard, her gaze passing over the 'Limited Edition Deluxe Ramen' set she had got for Minato's birthday a week ago. Apparently it had also became a frequent thing to see the blond jounin standing in front of the noodles with his mind warring whether or not he should eat them or keep the delicious noodles for sentimental value.

"Good afternoon Miyu." Kushina greeted, lying on the couch and flicking through some magazines. The red-head had also given Minato a wonderful present as well, and was thus on leave for the next nine to ten months. Miyu was anxious yet excited. She was going to be an aunt… to herself…

**_Confusing isn't it?_** Kurama noted, padding onto a comfortable chair to curl up on. She nodded but pushed further thoughts out of her mind.

"How was your day, Kushina-neechan?" She asked.

"Boring!" The woman moaned, rolling around on the couch, "I don't know if I can take ten months of nothing."

"Maybe you need a hobby?" Miyu suggested, settling down next to the woman.

"Maybe," Kushina greed thoughtfully, "I'll have to visit Mikoto-chan, I heard she's expecting as well. Maybe we can knit together." For a brief moment an image of a golden haired baby in warm, hand knitted clothes flitted through her mind along with the uncomfortable feeling of jealousy. Miyu dropped the thought in shock._ What do I have to be jealous for? _She berated herself internally, _my life was perfectly fine, and I even have the chance to do it over._

**_Define 'perfectly fine'._** Kurama drawled as he yawned._ It was good enough. I would've gotten all I ever dreamed of if it wasn't for that masked bastard. I would've been happy .__**But you did not get anything. In fact you had nothing left… you, of all people, are allowed to feel jealousy. If your plan works out this child will grow up happy and loved like you, should have. **_The demon's words were comforting in a way, but she refused to fall to such a petty emotion. _I'm going to spoil that kid rotten._ Miyu declared stubbornly.

"You should definitely." Miyu said aloud re-joining the conversation, "A pair of warm socks and mittens, a nice scarf and a cute beanie." She listed off possible clothing items.

"They would be perfect." Kushina sighed dreamily. Orange would be the perfect colour, a perfect mix of red and yellow.

"I'm home!" A cheerful voice called out as the front door was pushed open, "And I brought some guests." There were three set of footsteps as far as Miyu could tell.

"Kushina!" a second voice greeted. It was warm and hearty, the familiar low tenor bringing a small ache to Miyu's heart. "I heard about the good news, congratulations."

**_Kit._** The fox hopped of his perch and rubbed his face in her side in a soothing manner. Of course, it was just her luck that when she visited there would be guests…

"Ero-sennin!" Kushina chirped back, "It's nice to see you're doing well." Miyu could hear the grumbles and snickers that followed.

"I'm the great toad sage dammit, I demand some respect!" the sage rounded the corner and Miyu was able to catch a glance at her estranged godfather. He was a lot younger, she noticed, several of the lines which used to crease his face missing. His white hair wasn't as long and he seemed ever so slightly thinner. He turned his head and she caught his gaze as he studied her. "Is this the cute little Miyu-chan my idiot student won't stop rambling about?" He asked in a light tone.

"Hey!" Minato cried indignantly, entering the living room with a gorgeous blue haired woman who scanned the area lightly.

"Hello." Miyu waved with a small smile, "I'm Uchiha Miyu." Seeing him was almost as bad as the first time she same Kakashi, but a least the little warning she got helped her to brace herself.

"She's tiny." Jiraiya told his student not noticing the way the girl twitched in annoyance.

"She's perfect!" Minato countered stupidly.

"Whatever you say," the sage shrugged his shoulders lightly. "Nice to meet you midget." The tiny girl growled at him.

"I'm not a midget!" She snapped at him, "Stupid Ero-jiji." She let out a satisfied smirk as he spluttered at the name.

"Ero-jiji?!" He repeated, "I am the great toad sage! One of the three Sannin Jiraiya! I'm not just your everyday pervert," all four of the audience waited for the inevitable last statement, "I'm a super pervert!"

"Idiot." Minato snorted at the self-proclaimed menace. "Anyway… Kushina, Miyu, I'd like you to meet Konan." He introduced the woman at his side, "She's one of Ame's leaders and came over to visit Konoha and chat with the Hokage."

"Welcome," Kushina extended her hand with a warm smile, "I'm Uzumaki Kushina."

"It's a pleasure." Konan smiled back and shook the offered hand. She then turned towards the young girl with golden hair and ocean-blue eyes, her gaze straying slightly to the fox by her side. Miyu tilted her head in acknowledgement.

"Uchiha Miyu, and this is my partner Kurama," She greeted. "It's nice to meet you." Konan hid her surprise and confusion well, as one would expect of any trained ninja.

"Same here, Miyu-chan." She replied.

* * *

"So how old is she?" Jiraiya asked his student.

"Eight." Minato answered.

"And judging by the fact she managed to graduate we might have another prodigy." He responded with a small chuckle. Konoha was getting an awful lot of them lately, first the younger Hatake, then this little chibi-Minato and apparently the Uchiha's heir as well. What was next? The Hyuga?

"Mmhm," Minato hummed in agreement, "She and Iruka were the only two to pass the genin test."

"Really? The Umino kid?" Jiraiya thought back to a young brunet with a large bandage over his nose.

"Yep." The two men watched the two women chat about Kushina's pregnancy, with Miyu throwing in her own opinion every now and then.

"Have you thought of a name yet?" Konan asked.

"Not at all, I think right now we have to get use to me being pregnant." Kushina smiled and placed a hand on her flat stomach, "I'm not even showing yet." Konan nodded in agreement, the kunoichi looked as fit as ever. "Do you have anyone?" the Uzumaki asked earnestly.

"Ahh," The blue haired blushed lightly, sparking Miyu's interest, "I-I… not really."

"Who is it!?" Miyu asked curiously.

"W-well no one really…" Konan shifted uncomfortably under the intense dual gazes.

"Don't worry, your secrets safe here," Kushina added, "Were in an entirely different village in the first place and I think that's far enough away from home... unless the guy in question is over here…" She shifted her gaze to Jiraiya in a joking manner.

"No!" the foreign kunoichi denied frantically, drawing the two men's attention before they went back to their own conversation.

"So…?" Kurama threw in his puppy eyes, wondering if they would help any. Konan gave a resigned sigh.

* * *

It was a long while before any words were spoken. Both kunoichi listening to the idle chatter that drifted towards them from the living room. Kurama had left to hunt earlier, leaving Miyu alone with the sole woman who knew the most about her current identity.

"Uchiha Miyu? Is that your real name?" Konan finally asked.

"Well technically it's Uchiha Namikaze Uzumaki Miyu." The girl answered with a small smile. There would be no hiding in front of the blue haired woman but at the same time Konan would never get the entirety of her story. "How's Ame doing?" Konan stared at her speculatively.

"Good." She gave, "We have been quick to recover from the civil war and after gaining Konoha's alliance the villagers seem to have a better sense of security, knowing we are no longer alone. Our ninja have been efficient with our missions and I think yesterday Yahiko managed to get one of the younger Roots to smile." Miyu was pleasantly surprised, things were going much better than she hoped then.

"The ninja in Root have done nothing wrong, and by now you should have noticed how emotionless they are." She replied, "I sincerely thank you for returning some semblance of their humanity."

"It's nothing. Even if they are ninja, first and foremost they are humans." Konan responded, "It's what should be done."

"I wish more people saw it that way." Miyu replied. Slate grey eyes stared piercingly at the young girl as they tried to discern her, to unravel the mystery of her appearance and strength.

"Is this what you… look like?" The older woman asked after cautiously.

"If you're wondering if I'm truly a child then the answer is yes." The blonde sighed.

"Then how?" In the entirety of her stay in Amegakure, Konan had visited and spent most of her time with the 'woman', yet had never detected signs of a henge.

"Just an advanced version of a D-rank jutsu." Miyu explained, "I could show you?" The girl offered after a moment of thought, "It doesn't take too much effort to perform, but requires a bit of chakra to regulate it, more so if you're using it for an extended amount of time."

"Maybe another time." Konan declined. Hopefully this offer would give her an excuse to visit again, to come see the strange child who had defeated the legendary Hanzo. Many questions flitted through her mind giving her trouble as to which one to ask. "Then," Konan began, "How are you so strong? How strong are you?"

"…I train," Miyu replied, "Whenever I can. I'm not nearly strong enough yet." So she would become even more powerful, the thought would have unnerved the older kunoichi but for some strange reason it didn't.

"I think you're already plenty strong." She added, "With that fox and those eyes, you are an army of your own. Why do you need more?" Miyu shrugged.

"To protect." She answered simply, "To stop anything that dares harms anyone or anything precious to me." The blue haired woman gave a small nod of understanding.

"I can understand that," Konan said slowly. "It is not something you must do alone though…"

"I'm not. I will protect with all my ability and Kurama will be the one to keep me safe." Miyu stated with certainty. She seemed so much older, wearier, than her child body allowed. And despite how she appeared Konan would not treat her as a child, everything she picked up on went against that simple façade. The bright smile that contrasted against grim determination, the power that should be impossible for her to have, the deception of her appearance yet her honest personality and the darkness that held no malice. That was the true essence of the girl she knew as Miyu.

"The one Amegakure is indebted to is you," Konan declared, "And as such, regardless of whatever is needed, we will stand behind you, at your beck and call until that debt is repaid."

"And what debt would that be?" Miyu asked with a wry smile.

"The gift of our freedom."

* * *

- - - - - _Dream_ - - - - -

Naru huffed, hefting the extra baggage over her shoulder before continuing to her main destination. She manoeuvred through the streets of Konoha, passing the weary looking citizens, and stopped in front of a supermarket. Already, prices had begun to rise, it was inevitable in times of war but at least everyone understood that, and for now they were still very reasonable.

"What can I help you with today, Uzumaki-sama?" The attendant asked.

"I've told you countless times to just call me Naru, these formalities are too stiff for me," The blonde replied with a small yawn, "I was up all night searching for this bastard so I just need to pick up some groceries." She nudged Boy Wonder who was still unconscious. Maybe she had hit him too hard?

"I couldn't possibly disrespect you in such away," The attendant replied as usual, while she purchased some vegetables.

"Right, then I guess I'll see you later then." Naru gave a small wave before walking back to her passenger's home. Walking through the residential area she stepped past a couple of guards into a large compound after a small greeting.

"Welcome, Naru-sama." They intoned quietly, sighing in relief as they spotted their astray clansman.

"Better go alert Hiashi that I've found our missing idiot." One of the guards nodded and left immediately while the other resumed his watch. Naru trudged her way to the branch section and pushed oped the door before dropping the groceries and man. He groaned in response, finally coming to.

"Naru?" The kimono clad brunette asked groggily, "What the hell is going on here?" The last thing he could remember was running through the Forest of Death before he was knocked out from behind.

"We're back at the compound," She pointed to the bags of groceries behind him, "And that is going to be your food for the next few days instead of whatever you've been eating in that godforsaken forest. And your uncle will be in her in a couple of moments, hopefully to give you a good tongue lashing." Exactly on time the doors burst open and Hiashi strode in with unconcealed worry.

"Neji!" He exclaimed in relief, pulling his nephew up into a crushing hug unbefitting of the stoic clan. Naru sat back, watching in amusement as Neji got the lecturing of his life afterwards. Hiashi definitely didn't go easy on the young man, droning on for the next couple of hours about Neji's foolishness. He only relented when the moon rose up into the sky, and his youngest daughter came in to find him.

"Otou-san, it's getting late," Hanabi called, peeking from behind the door, "You should let Neji-niisan rest." She spotted Naru and gave her a small smile which the blonde returned warmly. Hanabi understood this was the woman her loved ones fought together with, the one who would succeed Lady Tsunade's position and the one her sister had admired, but more importantly Naruto Uzumaki was the one who had freed her clan and removed the seal from Neji's forehead.

Hiashi sighed but agreed with his daughter, his last remaining daughter, and left the room with a promise to be back early next morning. As the newbie genin disappeared from view, Naru's gaze turned sad thinking back to her deceased friend, Hinata. Kind, gentle Hinata, with her beautiful pale eyes and long dark hair. So fragile and yet so strong…

"Naru?" She was jolted from her reminiscing by Neji, who was watching her with worry, "Are you alright?"

"I think I should be asking you that." Naru replied dodging the question. She was a horrible liar but had found a simple solution in just not answering a question. Neji grunted, truthfully he felt horrible, lost and worst of all weak. "Right, here's the plan for tonight." Naru called pulling out a sealing scroll. She added a tiny amount of chakra and several ceramic bottles popped out along with a pair of small dishes. She uncorked a bottle a poured the clear liquid into both dishes. "We're going to drink our worries away." The blonde stated looking completely serious.

"Aren't those Tsunade-sama's?" Neji questioned, spotting the expensive labels on the sake.

"Yep," Naru replied, handing him the hand sized dish, "A privilege of being Hokage candidate." She picked up her own and locked arms with her old friend. "Now drink." They downed the liquid at the same time, feeling the burn in their throat. Yep, it was quality stuff.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

Miyu woke up slowly with the craving of sake. It was an hour before dawn in the morning and it seemed Kurama had returned, now waiting outside for her with a fresh carcass. She threw on a grey jumper and some comfortable pants before checking on her seals. A couple of taps here and there and she was moved up to level 6. Once again resistance levels seemed to increase and she was forced to push chakra into her limbs to move efficiently. Stepping outside, her partner was waiting in a quite space in the undergrowth with another dead, and neatly eaten tiger.

**_More stew?_** He asked as the girl quickly skinned and packed away the remains of the carcass.

"Mmhm." She hummed in answer. She did promise to treat the Ame leaders and now Konan was here she could take some back. She'd have to introduce Kushina and Jiraiya to her famous recipe as well.

"Hm? What are you doing out this early midget?" Jiraiya asked, casually walking up to the girl. Honestly he had been watching her since the moment she woke up but decided to make himself known after watching her efficiently butcher the overly large feline.

"Ero-jiji?!" The girl jolted in surprise. Neither her nor the fox had picked up the man, maybe he had been downwind? But either way why was he near the compound?

"Midget." He replied to his own derogatory name. They stared each other for a few moments as he tried to see whatever he could find in her eyes. When he had first seen her it had been a mixture of recognition, sorrow, hope and happiness, weariness and determination. Now the mass of emotions seemed to have been masked carefully except for trace amounts melancholy. Unusual for sure, something he would check into. "Let's go for a walk." The sage suggested. Miyu merely shrugged and followed him on a very familiar path, down the business district, into a small's sweets shop. She stood by outside as he made his purchase and lead her up to the top of the Hokage Monument. "Here." He unwrapped a frozen treat and split the double popsicle between them, handing her half.

"Thank you," her voiced wavered slightly. It was a simple yet heart-warming gesture. A lost tradition she had missed after his passing. They sat together silently, watching as the sun rose over their precious village. All the while Jiraiya observed her from his peripheral vision. Any other kid would be complaining out of boredom, of course with a few exceptions like the little Uchiha and last Hatake. It looked like Minato's angel would have to be added to the small list.

"Beautiful isn't it?" He commented. It was times like this he wondered how his teammates could leave their home.

"It is." She wondered if her former sensei would ever realize how precious this view was to her. It was like seeing her loved ones again. It reminded her of all the joys and hardships they went through together and served as a reminder to what she was fighting for. Kurama curled tighter around her shoulders, having climbed up and fallen asleep not too long ago. That response was all Jiraiya needed from her. It erased any doubts he may have had about the tiny blonde child. The raw emotions he saw in her eyes told him that this girl would never harm Konoha, she would protect this village with all her might till her dying breath, and for some strange reason Jiraiya felt as if she already had.

* * *

"Guess what I've picked up." Hizashi said cheerfully, walking into training ground 7 to meet his team. Watching both go through some simple katas together brought a smile to his lips. Taking on a genin team had done the recently widowed man wonders, and anyone that couldn't see that would have to be blind.

"Good morning Hizashi-sensei." His cute, little genins greeted in synch. Kurama barked out his own little greeting as well.

"Good morning you two." He smiled and waved the scroll, "So what do you think?"

"It's our first C-rank!" Iruka exclaimed excitedly.

"Correct!" Hizashi shouted back with the same enthusiasm. "So for today we'll forgo training. Instead you're going to have to go home and pack for a couple of nights out of the village. Catch a nap if you can, we'll be moving by night, and meet me at the village gates at sunset." He headed back to the compound to set up a babysitter, leaving behind his eager students.

"I'm going to run home then." Iruka decided, maybe he could get his mum to help him pack, "I'll see you later Miyu-chan!"

"Right." She watched her teammates leave and proceeded home herself, making a couple of stops along the way. First she managed to catch a spandex wearing teen on one of his jogs to inform him of her departure. She wouldn't be able to train with him for the next couple of day so Gai spontaneously decided he would train enough for both of them, efficiently doubling his schedule. She stopped by the apartment, lucky enough to find both Minato and Kushina still there, and finally she made her way to the Uchiha compound, smiling as the guards greeted her respectfully. She returned their gesture with a bright smile and made her way to her favourite little prodigy.

**_Chibitachi~_** Kurama called as he skipped along beside her. The young Uchiha knew how to give the best pats, second only to Miyu herself.

"Onee-san?" Itachi managed to spot the sunny blonde after hearing the fox's bark.

"Ah, Itachi it seems my team and I are going to be away on a mission for the next couple of days." Miyu called, jogging up to him.

"Alright then," The Uchiha replied stoically, refraining himself from pouting. "When are you leaving?"

"Today, at sunset." She announced. It was much sooner than he expected.

"I'll help you pack then." He offered helpfully.

"Arigatou." He was rewarded with an especially warm smile.

* * *

"Right Team!" Hizashi exclaimed, catching their attention, "Have you got everything you need and alerted your guardians?"

"Hai, sensei!" His genins replied with a salute. Miyu had sealed away everything she needed into a couple of scrolls and changed into durable boots and a reinforced fishnet shirt. Her weapons were all accounted for and packed into the pouch at her hip and she knew Iruka had gone through the exact same preparations. He had changed from his customary t-shirts into a navy turtleneck, and a useful multi-pocketed pair of pants. She looked to Kurama trying to remember if she had forgotten anything. After arriving home she had made enough stew for Konan to take back, Jiraiya and Kushina to try, and for some previsions she sealed away. She had packed some standard equipment for a possible B-rank and then taken a small nap like suggested.

**_You should be fine,_** Kurama decided. She was sufficiently prepared unless this became another unfortunate C-rank turned A-rank, but what were the chances of that?

"I better not have jinxed this…" Miyu muttered under her breath. _Haku and Zubaza huh… I wonder if I could save them? _She thought idly.

"Right, so we'll be doing border patrol for the next 3 days, not including the day it takes to get there. We're to relieve the team stationed at the edge of Wind country." Hizashi briefed, "We'll be moving quickly and should arrive at Takumi village in central Tanigakure by midnight. We're restricted to moving by night so you can spend the day in the village however you want." Their sensei allowed, "For now let's get moving." They took to the canopy and travelled quickly, Miyu with a certain bounce in her step.

**_Takumi village, in the Land of Rivers, also known as the village of artisans,_** Kurama remembered vaguely, **_known for the quality and abundance of weaponry. _**Miyu vaguely remembered visiting there in the past when she had started to pick up different weapon styles. She was never as skilled as Tenten in her mastery but she was confident enough that she was advanced in certain areas. Bojutsu in memory of Sarutobi, which then branched out to include spears, naginatas and three-quarter staffs. A pair of jutte or tonfa to strengthen her close combat skills. Tessen, after a helpful tip, to channel her wind affinity. Chakra blades after their more recent owners had passed, and a mediocre amount of kenjutsu that allowed for proficiency with a chokuto and tanto.

No, she wouldn't say weapons were her strong point, but she could cause a lot of bloodshed, and at that time that was all she needed to do. Plus in the end, despite her longing for them, she had never acquired a proper katana. **_Why not rebuild your meagre collection?_** The fox suggested. **_It seems you have all but started with those tantos, and while you are at it we can add some more swords. Katana, wakizashi, nodachi, whatever you feel like._** Miyu nodded, it sounded like a good idea, though would probably take a large chunk out of her current funds. _But Takumi village…_

"Hizashi-sensei," Miyu called softly as the team moved onwards.

"Is anything wrong?" The Hyuga was in charge of flanking the team while Iruka scouted just a little but ahead.

"I was wondering about Takumi Village," The girl replied, "Will they welcome us there?" Hizashi had to think about what she meant specifically, not minding the way Iruka slowed to listen to the conversation.

"Honestly, I can be sure. They are a bit resentful of ninja for almost never responding to their help request despite the fact they supply quality weaponry. But at the same time it's stuck between two waring villages, Konoha and Suna, so the situation there is likely to be unfavourable." He explained slowly.

"Why don't we ever send them help?" Iruka asked. He knew Konoha was a kind village that helped all its allies, why was this place an exception?

"Most of the time we just don't have the resources, with all these wars and such going on. It's also the fact that most missions aren't worthwhile. Either a delivery to a far off land that is likely to be hostile or bandit camps which usually pass over in a few days." The man shrugged, "We'll be going in henged anyway so there's no need to worry about the facts, instead worry about what you're going to look like."

* * *

**A/N** Thank you for reading.

Here we finally see where Ame's alliance lies, and a bit more of Konan (who understands that Miyu would probably remain a mystery.)

There's another flash back, now with Neji~ And sadly enough it is now confirmed that Hinata is dead (some of you probably caught the hint in the previous flashback), dying to save her teammates.

And the mission is a simple border control run...or is it? Ahahahah

Anyway, I'll get going now, I hope to see (metaphorically of course) you all again next time.


	16. Puppeteer of the Red Sand

**A/N** Hello again!

Finally we get to another relatively actiony part~ (though I may suck at writing them, it's there for anyone who likes ACTION!)

Writing's been going well and the reviews usually leave me with a smile. So thank you dear readers...all of you :D

As a random extra, I've been writing/rewriting the Kyuubi attack and honestly it seems a bit anticlimactic to me... yeah...so don't expect a full blown out battle yeah?

Anyway, onto the story...

* * *

**~Chapter 12 - PUPPETEER OF THE RED SAND**

It was midnight when three strangers strode into Takumi village. A stern looking man in his forties with short brown hair, peppered with grey, and dark brown eyes, led the two others in. On his right stood a younger male in his teens, with cropped brown hair and the same dark eyes, looking rather ordinary, and to his left was a slightly older looking woman, sharing the same brown hair cut to her shoulders and slightly lighter shaded eyes. From the traits they shared it was easy to assume they were family. "Quickly, Chie, Hiro. The inn is nearby." The older man ordered gently.

"Hai, Otou-san," His children replied as they quickened their pace. They made their way to a building exuding warm light and stepped through the door, the soft tinkering of a bell alerting the owners of their arrival.

"Welcome." And elderly man said with a small yawn. He hadn't expected anyone else to come tonight so it was a good thing he was a light sleeper, "How can I help you?"

"We need a room for the night," the father explained.

"We have plenty of space tonight, would you like to separate rooms or stay together?" He watched as the parent shared a look with his children.

"Together." He decided, placing a couple of coins on the table.

"Room 14," The innkeeper said, taking the money and handing them a key, "It's a four bed room on the second floor." The man gave him a brief nod and left for his room with his son following behind.

"Thank you." Chie said quietly with a smile, before catching up with her family.

* * *

"Make sure you keep out of trouble," their father reminded with a stern look. They were standing outside of the inn in the early afternoon, "And make sure to be back by sunset."

"Hai, Otou-san." The two children replied in sync. He gave them a nod of farewell before ambling down the road to his own destination, a sake bar.

"So what are you going to do, Mi-Chie?" Hiro asked, catching himself at the end of the sentence.

"I'm going to go shopping for some sealing equipment and see what else I can find along the way," She answered, "Feel free to do whatever you want, just be careful alright." Chie warned.

"Right." He nodded before making his way to a small bookshop, leaving the elder sibling alone. From there she made her way down bustling streets, passing multiple stores and scrutinizing their wares. Takumi village had truly earned its name as the village of artisans. She had a hefty amount of ryo she could spend but would be careful to be sure that each purchase was worth it.

"Over there! Young lady!" A rough voice called, "How about a beautiful hairpin to match your own beauty?" It was flattering for sure, and to keep up her ordinary façade, Chie decided to see his wares. The man did not disappoint, each ornament had been beautifully crafted, from the delicate looking combs to the ornate pins. She spotted a floral hairpin, decorated with several white blossoms that hung down from threads, and picked it up. It would be a nice gift, she decided. That thought led her to do a bit more of her gift shopping here. Chie picked up another pin, which had soft, warm-looking blooms bursting at the end, and a dark wooden comb, decorated with golds and reds.

"Could I get these?" She asked, handing showing them to the vendor.

"Of course. Are they going to be gifts?" He asked, calculating the total.

"Yes," Chie smiled warmly, "I came to the village with my father and brother on one of his delivery trips, while my mother stayed at home. Her body is ill so I hope a gift can help her get better faster."

"She must be happy to have such a thoughtful daughter." The vendor responded, "The total comes to 17,000 ryo." A bit pricey, but for the quality she was getting Chie happily handed over the money. "Thanks for your patronage." She nodded her head in his direction and began to leave when he caught her attention again. "Wait, have this as well, as a gift." He pushed an extra pin into her hand.

"Thank you." She said earnestly. It was simple, with metallic flowers painted a dark blue with leaves hanging off the end. She thanked him once more and discretely sealed the items away into her pouch. Looking around, it soon became obvious she was in a district specialising in female wares. Deciding to check the other areas she walked further down the street and took a left. This was definitely more like it. There was several rough buildings, different blacksmiths, focusing in different tools.

**_Perfect_**, a deep voice purred in her mind. Chie shrugged it off and went to check the closest one. It seemed to specialise in axes, not really what she had in mind so she moved to the next one.

* * *

"Welcome back." Her father greeted. The sun was just beginning to set and she was the last one to arrive.

"Did you buy anything?" Hiro asked curiously. He himself had bought a couple of useful and interesting books.

"Yep." Chie was very happy with her purchases, and the fact her funds were only slightly dented.

"It's good you two enjoyed yourselves," the older man stated with a smile, "let's get going then." His children followed him out of the town, mingling with the thinning crowd, and before long they were back in the forest. The trio disappeared into the canopy and immediately began jumping from branch to branch, a fox appearing alongside them. Letting the henge drop, they reverted back to their everyday appearance.

"So what did you buy Miyu?" Hizashi asked curiously, "I know Iruka spent the day flittering through the bookstalls but I didn't manage to spot you."

"I went to get some gifts, sealing equipment, and then visited the blacksmiths." She replied casually. It seemed the bounty she had received from Hanzo would last quite a while.

"Blacksmiths?" He repeated, "You'll definitely have to show me your purchases when we return to Konoha."

"Hai, sensei." Miyu responded. Despite her and Kurama's talks of rebuilding her collection she hadn't bought more than two different ones. It looked like it was going to be a slow process.

**_If you were not so picky it would be quicker._** Kurama grumbled. Miyu shrugged, she had only picked the ones that 'felt' right.

The hours dragged on and they took a single short break to recharge their energy. Hizashi was happy his team seemed fit enough to endure the journey. It was a bit tasking to ask it of a genin squad, but Iruka and Miyu were more than able.

"I can sense four people up ahead." Iruka announced, once again showing his apparent talent. "What do we do?"

"That's the team we're reliving," Their sensei explained, his Byakugan activated, easily identifying the ninja. "Let's head up and meet them." Their break was cut short as the three dashed to their targets. The jounin and his team were on high alert when they popped out of the trees, one of his team having drawn his sword. "Relax, Keiji, it's me." Hizashi, greeted with a small wave.

"Hizashi." The man was definitely relieved. He gave a signal and the drawn sword was sheathed. "It's good to see you're doing well. Is this your team?" He looked towards Iruka and then Miyu, "They look a bit young."

"Yes. This is Umino Iruka and Uchiha Miyu." Hizashi introduced, "Guys, this man is Takahashi Keiji and his team." His students gave a nod of acknowledgement.

"Uchiha, huh... I wouldn't have guessed it if I hadn't already known." Keiji commented. "Anyway this here is my team." He swept a hand over his trio. They were of varying ages but two looked vaguely familiar, especially when the one with the katana coughed a bit. "Morino Ibiki, Gekko Hayate and Itou Tokara." Ibiki seemed to be the oldest by a couple of years and still had his bandana, which seemed like a trait among his team. Miyu had never met Tokara or even heard of him, though the light-haired ninja seemed alright, he held himself with a confidence that could only be backed by skill.

**_Gekko, he would be a good sparring partner for practising kenjutsu._** Kurama intoned. He had never left the trees, instead opting to watch from his vantage point while keeping his presence unknown.

"As you can see, my team is pretty tired so we'll be taking our leave," Keiji informed, "I look forward to seeing your genins in action next time Hizashi." He gave a signal and he and his students soon disappeared from sight.

"Let's get going." Hizashi ordered, "We're close to the border but I don't like leaving it unattended."

"Hai sensei."

* * *

The border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind was a contrary thing. On the Land of Fire's side was near-endless forest, full of vivid flora and healthy fauna, which thinned out the further away one went from its centre. On the other hand the Land of Wind was a vast desert, rising and falling dunes underneath the harsh sun and the frequent sandstorms, only showing signs of green at its very edges. For two days already Team 7 moved along the border, diligently guarding it in the uncomfortable heat. It was tiring and tedious, Miyu spending most of her time sending out shadow clones to train somewhere away from prying, all-seeing eyes, and Iruka could usually be sneaking peaks into his newest books. Hizashi wasn't too happy either. In the beginning he had though it would be a great change of scenery, but had apparently forgotten how boring it could get.

It was late afternoon on the third day when Miyu was jolted out of the typical border control mindset. Her head ached slightly as she received a sudden influx of memories from her clones, causing her to falter in her step and catch the attention of her teammates. "Are you alright Miyu-chan?" Hizashi asked worried, seeing her face scrunch up in pain before morphing in to shock and then horror.

"Dammit! We need to get out of here and fast!" Miyu shouted sifting through her information to get an estimate of time.

**_He will be here in a couple of minutes,_** Kurama answered simply. He wanted to see how this would turn out, if his former container had improved enough since entering the past.

"What is it?" Iruka asked, "An enemy?"

"Yes," Miyu hissed, "And he's heading this way, quickly."

"Shouldn't we confront him them?" The brunette asked confused. Wasn't that the whole point of border control?

"Not this ninja." She tried to usher her team away but Hizashi seemed to have his own plans.

"Wait, Iruka is right," The Hyuga said tensely with his dojutsu activated, "We have to see what this foreign shinobi wants and if he can be deemed a threat." Their youngest member sighed. She was hoping for an easy mission, but this just complicated it that much more. Though, to be fair, it was her own foolishness that brought on this curious stranger.

**_He is here._** The fox took up a wary stance, lowering his body closer to the ground, and the rest of the team followed in suit, sliding into cautious defensive stances.

"Found you." A monotonous voice called as a cloaked figure appeared in a swirl of sand in front of them. She wouldn't call his voice emotionless though, since she could hear the underlying irritation. "How interesting." He didn't seem older than fifteen, with brown eyes and short red hair. The rather handsome young teen had a fragile look about him as if he would blow over in a harsh wind, though Miyu certainly knew that wasn't the case.

**_Looks can be deceiving as you have heard and experienced, many times before._** Kurama expressed wisely. Iruka didn't appear to recognize the older boy though their sensei definitely did.

"Sasori of the Red Sand," The Hyuga named with a hostile glare, "What are you doing here at the borders?"

"A Hyuga? A fox, and a couple of children…" Sasori tilted his head to the side as he examined the team, stopping when his eyes landed on the young girl, "Imagine my surprise when I saw over fifty small children, all identical girls with blonde hair and blue eyes, training out in the harsh desert." Miyu cursed under her breath as Hizashi sent her a glance that foretold the tongue lashing she would receive later.

"You still haven't answered my question," He stated calmly with an edge to his voice, "What are you doing here, shinobi of Sunagakure?" Iruka without knowing the full situation, remained silent, observing the conversation carefully.

"Isn't it obvious?" The redhead answered, "I came to see the child who could create so many shadow clones, more than most jounin, apparently without looking even the slightest bit winded." He never took his piercing gaze of her and she stared back defiantly.

"So now what?" Miyu wanted to be anywhere except near the master puppeteer, "You've seen me, now leave."

"I don't think so. I want to see, what else can you do?" His wanted to test out his puppets, and where better than some interesting enemy nin. Besides, he needed more practice material if 'that' technique was to be completed. He reached into cloak and pulled out a black scroll and held it out for them to see as it unfurled. Written in the centre was a single character, the kanji for crow.

"Iruka, Miyu, the relief team should be on their way," Hizashi stated, moving in front of his students, "Quickly, escape and alert the ninja in command of the situation."

"Sensei…" Iruka was reluctant to leave, his gut feeling telling him to be especially wary of this new character.

"Hizashi-sensei," Miyu cut in, "I think it'd be better for you to leave." In the end it had been her own actions which had born such dire consequences, she wouldn't let anyone else fight in place of her, especially against such a dangerous foe.

"What are you talking about?!" The Hyuga asked surprised, was she trying to be a hero? He knew, prodigy or not, she would not be able to match up to the experience of a war veteran.

"You'll be faster, a lot faster at getting help. And against Sasori, you're at a disadvantage."

"Disadvantage?" Iruka asked. Hizashi frowned at her words though the puppet user seemed curious as well.

"Please explain." Sasori prompted. She was a just genin… right?

"You use puppets," Miyu began scrutinizing the scroll, "I have no idea what poisons or weapons you've rigged them with but it's definitely a bad opponent for a taijutsu expert who relies on close combat fighting."

"And you think you can do better?" Said taijutsu user was more than irked that his own student seemed to have some many doubts about his skill, though to be fair she was mostly correct.

"You've heard of my… 'other' bloodline, right." She asked quietly, not daring to let Sasori in on her possible abilities. Both of her teammates gave vague nods, accelerated healing, if they remembered correctly. "Well, that makes me the best person to act as a decoy."

"Hn." If it had been a different situation Miyu would have laughed at how well he had managed to perform the Uchiha's signature grunt. As it was, she settled for a small smile, watching him with sharp, resolved eyes. Hizashi, contrary to how he acted most times, was not as nice as one was led to believe. He was a ninja, a master at the art of deception, and rarely showed his more disliked side. He was convinced only his twin brother knew how harsh he could be, and right now, at the possibility of sacrificing a child, he truly wanted to see her full capabilities.

"Bloodline?" Sasori had heard part of what was said and his curiosity overwhelmed his impatience at the moment.

"Oh, yes," She stared at him with fierce determination, "I am very hard to kill and if you let these two go I'd be happy to show you." He looked between the group for a couple of moments before giving a slight nod. He had already defeated a many Hyuga, and unless the boy was also going to claim he had a rare bloodline as well, the red head was content to let him run off. And then, when they returned with reinforcements, he would kill the rest of them. Hizashi cursed under his breath. Sasori was like a predator who had chosen his prey and wouldn't be swayed for anything.

"Iruka, find a place to set up _that _seal, you remember how to do it right?" Hizashi asked. In the end neither of them would escape. Iruka gave a curt nod and pulled out a blank scroll as well as sealing equipment. He didn't waste time and quickly began a series of complex strokes. "Miyu, you only have to hold Sasori off until that seal is done," He took up his guard in front of Iruka, "I will keep him protected so keep you attack focused on Sasori. As soon as you are in danger though I won't hesitate to step in." After a month with her new sensei, Miyu knew him well enough to know he wouldn't hesitate to switch bodies with her if she got into a troublesome situation. He had given her a rare opportunity to fight and truly test her skills while keeping her team safe.

**_Now, how shall we go about this?_** Kurama asked as she stepped forward.

"Are you done?" Sasori drawled. He didn't feel like waiting any longer.

"Yes, thank you for waiting," She answered, most ninja weren't so…'kind'

**_We have spectators,_** the fox reminded her,**_ do not show all our trumps._** _I will do as much as necessary to keep them safe._ She responded in turn.

"Kurama, Restriction level 1 release!" The blonde girl called, as power surged inside her. Hizashi wouldn't have believed it happened if he hadn't seen it. The fox, now as big as a horse, with two thrashing tails, breathing out a deep cloud of smoke.

"Interesting," Sasori stated with a smirk, "You kept me waiting long enough, Karasu!" The marking on his scroll vanished as a pupped flew out, immediately diving for the girl. The familiar three eyed, four armed, figure taken down by Kurama as the fox pounced. His jaws were alight with burning flames as he bit down, though he had to retreat before doing any substantial damage due to the protruding blades on the puppet's body, glistening with unknown poison. Miyu quickly raised a kunai to deflect the poisonous senbon shot at her from the dolls mouth.

"Can you burn it Ku?" The fox smirked, seeing the charred parts of his previous bite.

**_Of course. _**He pulled his head back, charging up a fiery attack while Miyu formed a couple of quick seals.

"Futon: Daitoppa!" She pushed roughly twice the needed chakra into the mediocre attack, transforming it into a rending gust. Kurama released his own attack, Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu, from what Hizashi could see. The two attacks synched together perfectly creating a deadly wave of flames heading directly at the puppet user.

"Sanshouo." Sasori pulled out a second puppet, the salamander appearing to block the attack with its iron frill. "A fox that can perform jutsu? That would make a wonderful toy." Kurama growled threateningly, watching as the attack was deflected by the puppet's superior defence.

"Kurama, take down its frill," Miyu commanded, "The hinge by its sides are its weak points-" She pulled her kunai back up and deflected Karasu's bladed arm. A second one came up and she raised another of her won arms, jumping back before the last two could slice her. It was obvious this level of skill wasn't going to get her anywhere other than the grave. She tensed and brought her left hand up into the ram seal "Kai!" The resistance seals on her body glowed, and she already felt a lot lighter. The difference could be clearly seen when Karasu went in for a second attack and she parried each of his limbs before kicking him away.

"But what is a pet without his owner," Sasori pondered aloud. It was either Konoha was training super ninja or this girl was something special, something to be dissected and examined. He upped the ante, adding more chakra treads between him and his puppet, making it faster and its attacks more accurate than the lazy work from before.

"Kuh," His attacks were hitting heavier as well Miyu noted with a grunt. She glanced to the side to see Ku had almost detached the defensive frill, just a little longer before she could burn the puppets.

"You shouldn't look away from your enemy." The puppeteer informed. She was slightly thankful for his warning and jerked her head to the side, mainly avoiding the giant spike protruding out of Karasu's mouth. It scraped her cheek, and she swiped a kunai against the wound, making sure to bleed any poison out. Sasori watched with fascination as the wound healed over without even a mark in a matter of seconds. He missed how his second puppet finally succumbed to the fox, who crunched straight the enhanced wooden body, the iron frill laying uselessly on the ground.

**_I'm ready, Kit._**

"…" He muttered something inaudible under his breath and the doll swung around fast, catching her abdomen with a hidden scythe in its stomach. Once again Miyu bleed the poison out before he wound healed over. It took slightly longer and Sasori halted in his attack, observing with increased fascination as the significantly larger cut disappeared. "...Perfect."

"Now Kurama!" The fox shot off a large flamethrower, verging on white-hot, slamming into the remaining puppets body and sending it to the ground. "Kaze no Yaiba." The blade of wind dug deeply into the puppets body, while the fire burned away the connecting chakra strings. Hizashi watched on amazed. Was this the true skill level of his student?

"Perfect!" Sasori repeated, unaffected by the loss of his tools, "How utterly perfect!" He pulled out a larger red scroll from behind him and Miyu could spot the number of different names written one it. "I have never felt closer to eternal beauty!" The delirious teen exclaimed, "A body that never scars, I want it!" Hundreds of chakra strings stretched from his body into the scroll, causing ripples on the parchments surface, "Akahigi: Hyakki no Soen!" Like a scene from a nightmare a hundred red cloak figures rose out of the scroll hanging suspended in the air. She hadn't heard of this except from Sakura who had tried to describe the technique to her. The lifeless, preserved corpses staring blankly at her. She could spot a couple of Uchiha in the group as well as Hyuga that must be riling up Hizashi's blood.

"Restriction level 2, release." Kurama didn't question her choice. They would definitely need more fire power. He increased size and additional tail comforted Hizashi slightly. Though, the real question was how far the fox could go.

"What about it?" Sasori asked grandly, "Why don't you just submit to me? And I promise I won't damage you too badly." She shook her head. Iruka looked close to finished with his seal. It would just be a little longer. "So be it, I wouldn't mind seeing that wonderful ability again." He simply swung his arm and already half the army was diving towards her. It was impossible to block every attack the trained, older shinobi continued to throw at her, impossible to dodge every jutsu they performed and definitely impossible for her to dispose of more than a mere handful of them. Kurama flung as many as he could away from his partner with a sweep of his tail, biting as many as he could fit in his jaws and slashing as many he could reach. Worse of all, a wound covered Miyu was looked over to see the remaining half of the army swarming her sensei.

"Leave them alone!" She growled ferally, her eyes darkening dangerously.

"Then submit!" Sasori answered with a smirk. Soon, one way or another, he would be getting his eternal beauty. Seeking to antagonize her further he sent more puppets towards her team, specifically Iruka, who was trying desperately to focus on the seal. Hizashi was too caught up stopping the majority that it couldn't be helped one slipped through.

"Stop!" Images of the past filled her head as she tore through the small army. Dismembered limbs, blood-soaked grounds, gutted teammates. Kunai embedded themselves in her body. Jutsus burned and tore through her flesh, as she broke out of their suffocating grasp.

"Activate!" Iruka finished just as a heavy sword came down towards him, landing with a sickening sound. His brown eyes widened at the maimed body before him, "M-miyu!" The blade had clearly cut through her right shoulder, undoubtedly smashing through her collar bone.

**_Oi!_** Kurama barked loudly,**_ you are not invincible so stop acting like you are or you will really die! _**As if to prove his point Miyu coughed out a mouthful of blood, drawing in a shuddering breath. A couple of kunai slid out of her limbs due to the movement, and clattered on the ground. Hizashi couldn't do anything but try to prevent any further attackers through, his palms flying out in different directions as he disabled more and more opponents. The human puppet pulled the sword out of her body and prepared for another attack, stopping dead in his tracks as the girl glared up at him with blazing red eyes.

"Amaterasu!" Iruka watched as the black flames consumed the ninja's body, leaving absolutely no trace of behind. The girl staggered, holding her shoulder as a flash of yellow appeared in the midst of battle.

"Miyu?!" She turned to face the voice, instead collapsing onto a panicked Iruka.

**_Rest, kit._** The demon fox said softly, **_they are safe… you are safe…_**

* * *

**A/N **Thank you for reading.

A hopefully not confusing intro and a decent battle scene (a little cliche? I hope not.) I tried fairly hard to try and show her skill levels compared to a high ranking ninja we all know (and love (secretly (or maybe not so secretly...))).

Their henge identities was Hizashi as the stern and strict father. Iruka as Hiro, the well-behaved son and Miyu as Chie, the charming daughter. Fun times.

Once again, a simple C-rank gone askew. And Hizashi wasn't quite the nice guy I made him out to be (I mean he's still pretty cool but a bit more ruthless than one might expect...) He is a ninja who can be cold and calculating at times, yet kind and friendly at others.

Sasori may seem slightly out of character. I aimed to highlight his current obsession (before he decided turning himself into a puppet was a good idea), the whole 'Eternal beauty' thing (which he keeps for most his life). And I thought he would appreciate Miyu's super accelerated healing/no scar ability. He was essentially toying with her the whole way through so, slightly due to her reluctance to use the sharingan and how she couldn't possibly reveal more of Kurama's powers, Miyu wasn't going to win that battle.

And Miyu jumped into the way of a sword...yay. She's going to take a while to heal that... her first mission is over, even though she collapsed at the end, and her Sharingan is revealed.

I wonder who the mysterious flash of yellow is...

Next chapter; hospital recuperation, council meetings, Rin's fate, time skip~ (Nearing the ninetails attack.)

As always, please drop a review if you're in the mood, otherwise just stay tuned for the next chapter.


	17. The Aftermath of War

**A/N **Hello again, my awesome readers :D

We're slowly but surely working away towards the Nine Tails' attack And I can say I'm pretty excited. (Though once again the scene itself is rather anticlimactic...) Please don't expect an actiony fight scene.

Most of you guessed that Minato has come to the rescue in the previous chapter (Not that it was a very hard thing to guess...)

Oh, and those questioning about her name... She mostly just introduced as Uchiha Miyu for the simple reason that her name would otherwise be troublesome to say. Therefore since 'she is mostly Uchiha' the clan name takes preference.

An to the Guest that brought up the ever confusing relationship Miyu has with both her parents (and the fact that the are half-siblings, though not quite as it is just a fabricated but ultimately believable story...) I swear I've thought this through more times than I can count and I'm about 90% sure they they wouldn't be related if the story were true. Let's use an example so I can clarify to myself and any others. So, say Minato's mother and Kushina's father got together. The resulting child would be their half-sibling, but Minato and Kushina themselves would not be related. At most, if their parents had then married (which they clearly didn't), they would be step-siblings and that's about it. Now let's use MATH. A+B=M and X+Y=K and B+X=N. Neither M or K share any letters (parents) in common! I hope this clears up any doubt...

And by the way, to my readers who have seen the original...WE'VE CAUGHT UP! As of the next chapter everything will be new and hopefully surprising!

Let's just get on with the story...

* * *

**~Chapter 13 - THE AFTERMATH OF WAR**

- - - - - _Dream_ - - - - -

"Please… don't take him away from me! Don't take any more of my family away from me!" The ever-familiar blonde with bloodstained hair, trailing freely down her back and war-torn clothes, staggered towards the man she'd come to know as her brother. "Please!" She crouched by his body, noting the tiny shallow breaths, he struggled with.

"Na-ru…?" He turned his jade green eyes towards her, reaching up towards her with a blood covered hand. He had been taken down by a poisoned weapon, though from the way it had torn through his abdomen, it looked like it was going to be fatal regardless of the toxin. He was dying. His hand landed on her cheek, disrupting the steady flow of tears.

"Gaara…" Naru's vision blurred as the tears fell from her face. She couldn't lose him too, she wouldn't! "Just, hang on! Please…Sakura will be here any minute now." The red head blinked slowly. She should know it was hopeless, yet time after time she refused to face reality.

"N-naru," She tried to shush him, seeing as it was paining him to talk but he merely shook his head. "Stop crying… it doesn't suit you," He said slowly, smiling as she tried to furiously wipe away her tears for him.

"Please, stop talking Gaara," Naru pleaded, "Don't strain yourself." He gave a rough cough and blood leaked from the corner of his mouth. These were his finals words, whether she wished to believe it or not, and he had to say them before his heart gave out.

"Thank you… Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto," He began with small brief stops in between, "For showing me how to love… how it was more than just a word. For healing my heart… and mending the ties between my family. For cherishing me… and becoming my… hope… all of our hope…I entrust you with the future…we all…believe in you."

"Don't entrust me with something that precious!" Naru shouted, tearing up again, "Live! And then we'll protect it together!"

"…I'm getting a bit... tired," The insomniac red head said softly, "I guess I should tell them hello… from Shikamaru…" The light in his eyes quickly began to fade, "Smile, Na-ru…" his arm went limp and his hand fell from her cheek, landing on the ground with a soft thump, as he gazed blankly up at the stormy sky.

"No, no, no, no!" She searched frantically for any sort of pulse, "Gaara, please, answer me!" He stared at her with now lifeless eyes and his rapidly cooling body. "Gaara…AARAHG!" She screamed into the sky, howling like an animal that had lost a member of its pack. Birds scattered and her voice rang out in the empty field. Her teammates heard her cry and hurried towards her, finding the poor girl trying her hardest to smile as she wept over the body of the Fifth Kazekage.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

Miyu started awake, touching her cheek to feel the leftover tears from her dream. Unsurprisingly, it looked like she was back in Konoha's hospital, and very heavily bandaged.

**_Kit,_** Kurama seemed relieved to know she was awake, **_you have finally awoken. I will come see you in a moment._** He dropped out of the connection, leaving the girl back in solitude. Carefully, she tested each of her limbs, slowly flexing the muscles and checking for any pain. Other than a slight ache from her shoulder, most of her wounds seemed to be healed. Left with nothing to do other than lay there Miyu was swept up in a storm of her own thoughts. She assumed it was the close proximity of Suna which triggered the more recent flashback… or maybe the red of the puppeteer's hair…Sasori, she wondered what happened after she collapsed. Kurama had assured her before she blacked out that her team was safe so that was one less thing to worry about.

"I need to get stronger," Miyu sighed to herself, she didn't want to waste all her precious time in a hospital. The door swung slid open quietly, catching her attention, and a tired looking Iruka walked in with a fresh vase of flowers. He looked up and met her eyes, dropping the ceramic piece in surprise.

"Miyu!" The girl winced at the loud shattering sound.

"It's nice to see your fine." Miyu replied with a small smile. "How have you been?"

"Worried." The boy stepped over the mess and quickly made his way to the bed, "How are you feeling? Are you hurt anywhere? Do you need me to call anyone?" He fussed over her like a flustered mother hen.

"Calm down Iruka, I'm alright-"

"Alright?!" He all but shouted, "You were nearly sliced in two! Do you know how many kunai the doctors pulled out from your body?!"

"But I'm fine now." She reassured. The boy calmed back down and sat in a chair beside her.

"…I was afraid y'know," He admitted quietly, "That Sasori guy was a monster, and we were going up against an army of zombies. But most of all I was afraid you weren't going to wake up." She listened to him carefully. At times she had forgotten he was just a nine year old boy, and now she could see that their first real mission was taking a toll on him. "I'll train harder, I'll get stronger, so please don't throw yourself in front of danger like that again," Iruka gritted his teeth, he had never felt more useless than in that moment, watching a small girl take a blow meant for him, "I promise I will get stronger, strong enough to protect myself and my precious people." His resolved mirrored her own and she had no doubt his determination would be just as great.

"We'll get stronger together." She decided, "Hopefully strong enough to stay out of a hospital." They both cracked small smiles.

"Nice to see you're awake." A stern voice called from the doorway.

"Hizashi-sensei." Iruka greeted. The Hyuga walked in with black clothes hanging over his arm and Miyu's hitai-ate.

"I wasn't sure if you were awake, but thankfully you are. Good timing I guess." Their sensei rambled slightly. He put the black clothes on the bed, showing them two be two small kimonos. The blonde recognized them instantly and froze "Both of you get dressed quickly." He said with a small sigh. Iruka nodded, taking his and hopping behind a curtain.

"Who?" She asked softly, tentatively reaching for the soft material. Hizashi gave the small girl a pitying look.

"Nohara Rin."

* * *

A handful of ninja, all dressed in black, stood silently around a coffin. Their heads, bowed in a sign of respect as they mourned their most recent death. On top of the coffin was a small frame which showed the deceased. A young girl with short brown hair and purple markings on her cheeks. There were no tears. It was a solemn and desolate affair. The Hokage had arrived in his own funeral robes, speaking a few words for the girl as he did with all his shinobi. When Hiruzen took the chance to gaze around the small field he spotted the last arrivals. Her certainly did not expect the small girl to be up and about so soon, but was proven wrong as she calmly strode up to the coffin. There were some small whispers and startled looks as the ninja made way for her. She reached the casket and spent a long time staring at the photo before gently placing a small decorative comb on the top.

"I'm sorry." She said quietly, "I'm sorry for getting back so late. I'm sorry for not being able to save you." She clenched her fists tightly and bower her head, saying farewell to the girl she had failed to save. Undoubtedly one of the many lives she had let fade away…

* * *

"Miyu, I'm so glad you're ok." Minato quickly walked up to the girl and swept her into a gentle hug, "Please, don't worry me like that again." Kakashi trailed a bit behind him, the light which he had only just recently regained once again absent from his eyes. He was definitely worse off than before.

"Are you alright Kakashi?" Miyu asked him quietly once Minato released her. He blinked as if only just noticing her, and thought her sentiment was strange.

"I'm…fine." He replied emotionlessly. And he was, compared to the small girl covered in bandages underneath her kimono. His sensei sighed sadly, it was almost as if he had lost all his students. Minato couldn't remember the last time he had felt so inadequate. He had let his team fall apart and had lost not one but two promising students to the shinigami. Hopefully, he prayed, that Kakashi would recover.

"Excuse me for interrupting," Miyu turned to see the Hokage beside her teammates, "But if possible I would like to borrow some of your time." Minato sighed, it was going to be a long day. The five of them were led towards the Hokage tower, all the while villagers parted allowing them a generous berth. The journey was silent and uneventful and filled with lingering sadness, the group quickly finding themselves inside the Hokage office.

"Well, let's move onto one of our first topics of business." He picked up the mission report Hizashi had written up, "Uchiha Miyu, on you last mission, which was rather unlucky, you encountered and battled against an S-rank ninja. In recognition of you skill and ability I would like to promote you to chuunin, congratulations." He handed the stunned girl the signature flak jacket, smiling amusedly at her expression.

"…Thank you." She eventually said, accepting the article of clothing.

"Now that that's out of the way we have something more important to discuss and this concerns both Kakashi and Miyu."

"Is this about the Mangekyo Sharingan?" Hizashi asked abruptly. His had seen the eyes of his youngest student through the crowd of zombie ninja. The pattern had been unlike anything he had seen before, vastly different from the tomoe of the normal Sharingan. And of course, as a rival clan of the Uchiha, he knew all about their dojutsu.

"Mangekyo?" Kakashi echoed, he hadn't heard about such a thing yet, even from Obito who boasted about his clan's kekkei genkai.

"The Sharingan actually has two stages of release," Sarutobi proceeded to explain, "First the standard Sharingan, with different levels of mastery indicated by the number of tomoe, and then the Mangekyo. The stimulus for the first stage is merely feeling a powerful emotion whereas the Mangekyo is a bit more specific. It comes from the trauma experienced by the death of someone very close to the user, which usually occurs after witnessing the event first hand." He spoke softly not exactly wanting to upset anyone with his hypothesis. "Or possibly just death itself…" he pondered.

"Now, the Mangekyo Sharingan is extremely powerful, but it comes at a great cost," Hiruzen warned, "Not only the cost of achieving it there is also the added cost of its power."

"Cost?" Iruka asked worried.

"The Mangekyo requires immense amounts of chakra to be able to sustain it, and while the techniques are indeed fearsome, they will slowly deteriorate the uses eye sight the more they rely on the dojutsu." Hiruzen explained.

"So, essentially you're saying that if these two use the Mangekyo Sharingan they will slowly become blind?" Hizashi surmised receiving a nod of confirmation. It was strange how vastly contradicting the two dojutsu of the village were. One supporting taijutsu, the other focusing on genjutsu and ninjutsu. One all seeing, the other resulting in blindness.

"Blind?!" Minato panicked slightly. "Miyu, Kakashi! How many fingers am I holding up?" Both gave him similar expressions and responded in synch.

"Two." They answered simply enough. Miyu accepted him concern whilst Kakashi on the other hand wondered if his sensei had forgotten his other eye.

**_Your eyes would never hinder you._** Kurama stated in her mind, his current location a mystery. **_The amount of chakra, with our shared reserves, is of no concern. They have been transplanted thrice, once between brothers and the other with an impeccable technique, and even if that were not the case your healing factor would have slowed the deterioration down tremendously, possibly even stopping it depending on how frequent your use was. It is perfect for someone like you._** Miyu wouldn't admit it but the fox's words unsettled her, she had never wanted this cursed dojutsu.

"There's not much we can do about it since the dojutsu has naturally manifested, though I recommend avoiding the use of if." The Hokage informed, watching both ninja nod obediently. "Other than that, you are dismissed," He gave a small smile and addressed the whole group, "I'm sure you're all tired." The ninja quietly left, no one in the group speaking as they made their way outside. For some it was the information they were trying to process that stopped them from speaking and for others it was the sheer weariness that weighed heavily on their minds.

"Minato," Hizashi began, placing a hand on each of his students' shoulders, "If you don't mind I'd like to take Miyu to the Hyuga compound and debrief her. I know Kushina is eager to see her but I would rather do it now than later."

"I guess that's alright," Minato gave the small girl a once over, she didn't look like she would just keel over anytime soon even though she was fresh out of the hospital. "She'll get to see her later tonight anyway."

* * *

"So Miyu," She shifted as her sensei hit her with a piercing stare, "Is there anything that we, as you team, should know about?"

**_Even without the Byakugan, a Hyuga can be fearsome._** Kurama commented drily. She had finally found him, or more accurately he had found her, on the way to the compound, and was now sitting by her side.

"What do you want to know?" She asked, wondering if it was even possible to lie to this man. It didn't help that Iruka was looking at her expectantly. If anything it would probably be harder to lie to her former, younger sensei.

"Let's start off with the facts first then," Hizashi sighed, "You are intelligent, far passed your years. It's unlikely but not impossible, as Konoha has many of these prodigies. But not only that, you have and aptitude for seals." She stayed silent as she listened to his analysis, "A skill high enough you've managed to teach Iruka through the beginner levels, and can even create some yourself."

"Sorry." Iruka whispered as she wondered where he had found out about their study sessions.

"Iruka does not hide his newly developed sealing skills but you do, and frankly I had no idea why, though now I think I've figured it out, or at least part of the reason." Hizashi watched out for any body cues she might give. He was more perceptive than she gave him credit for, something she was starting to regret. "You like to keep your abilities secret. I don't know whether it's because you want to have a trump or merely feel uncomfortable with those around you knowing, but you will never elaborate on your skills unless asked specifically. You may be amnesiac, but surely you've found enough reason to trust in this village."

"I would stake my life for Konoha." Miyu responded seriously, "In here I have found family and friends, but I cannot trust every single individual, even if I want to. I'd rather keep some things a secret than someone I don't want to know finding out."

"Who are you talking about?" Iruka asked. So far he hadn't met anyone in the village that seemed particularly evil.

"I don't know yet. But there will definitely be people I find as my enemies out there." She stated confidently. She was lying to some extent, that much Hizashi could tell, but at least her comment about dying for Konoha seemed completely truthful.

"Right, well let's talk about something else why don't we?" Hizashi suggested, eyeing the fox, "Why don't you tell us more about Kurama?"

"What about him." Miyu proceeded cautiously.

"Just the general scope of his abilities, what he can or cannot do." He narrowed his eyes slightly, "But more importantly what he is." His eyes had seen it all, no matter what he reported to his superior. The chakra coils that almost composed the animal's whole being, the transformations that added tails and became more demonic and less fox-like with each form.

"Is he a summon?" Iruka asked.

**_Maybe it is better for them to know now then later,_** Kurama yipped.

"No…He is, for lack of a better description, chakra."

"Huh?" It was clear she had confused Iruka.

"I don't know how he came to be," and that was true enough seeing as she had never paid attention to history, "But he exists."

"So an entity of chakra with a form of intelligence." Hizashi felt himself shiver involuntarily, "Like the Bijuu…" He uttered under his breath.

"Exactly like them." Miyu replied, surprising him with the fact she had heard.

"So how many tails?" He asked. Iruka merely looked back and forth between the two, trying to somehow understand the serious conversation.

"Seven." She replied instantly, and much to her surprise, he laughed.

"I would bet the small fortune I have that you've lied." He said confidently and entirely accurately, "It's nine isn't it?" Kurama watched him with a sharp gaze, what would this man do with the knowledge he had gained?

"That's-" He cut her off again.

"You're also a very bad liar." Hizashi said with a small smile, "I can understand why you would lie about that though. Nine tails would give a very suspicious image. But at the same time I can't help but wonder what we've got on our hands here. A pseudo-Kyuubi?" He knew it couldn't have the actual being seeing as he already knew where it had been sealed up.

"...More or less." She answered with a sigh. "Will you tell?"

"Not unless I have to, I believe people are allowed to keep their secrets. But I want to understand my team. What exactly I have on my hands." The Hyuga explained giving the girl a small sense of relief, though she was surprised that he would go as far as to keep it from the Hokage himself.

**_Someone's coming,_** Kurama informed telepathically. Not even a moment after they heard footsteps and a polite knock.

"Hizashi, are you busy? I brought Neji-kun with me," A soft voice called.

"Ah, come in Hitomi." By the lack of honorifics Miyu could tell the two were close. The door to Hizashi's office slid in and Miyu felt her breath catch in her throat. Yet again she was unprepared for a chance meeting. The woman was breathtaking. Long, dark purple hair hung to her waist and framed her face, while her eyes were of the typical Hyuga lavender. She stood elegantly in a royal purple kimono with a small dark haired child in her arms. A kind disposition, and warm expression, she reminded Miyu of Hinata, a slightly pregnant Hinata.

"Oh, who are our guests?" Hitomi asked, sending a smile at the two students. Miyu caught sight of Iruka blushing from her peripheral vision and smirked slightly. She couldn't blame him, after all the Hyuga clan was rather renowned for their beauty.

"This is Umino Iruka and Uchiha Miyu, my genin team. Iruka, Miyu, this is Hyuga Hitomi, my sister-in-law," So it was Hinata's mother, and the boy in her arms… "And my son Neji." The child was small, less than a year old, with a patch of dark-brown hair on his head. He smiled as his name was called, turning and reaching out for his father. Hitomi laughed quietly and handed the child over.

"He seems to always miss you." She turned back towards the doorway, "I promised my husband I would meet him right about now so I'll take my leave if you don't mind. It was a pleasure meeting you Miyu-chan, Iruka-kun." She winked at the small boy who seemed as red as a tomato, and slid the door shut before she walked off.

"Don't mind her." Hizashi laughed "She likes to joke around." Miyu would have never expected it. While watching her sensei and his child Miyu felt her heart warm at the sight. They both looked so happy and peaceful together.

"Would you like to hold him?" Hizashi asked, seeing the way her eyes were glued to his little Neji.

"Can I?" His answer was to gently place the baby in her arms and she instinctively shifted them in place to support him properly.

"Have you held a baby before?" He asked curiously.

"I guess I have." Miyu replied with unusual sadness. Neji blinked staring into her eyes and giggled lightly, making soft babbling sounds.

"Oh? He likes you." The father commented, "I think he secretly has a thing for most women, especially the pretty ones…maybe a future prediction?" To imagine his student in her later years he used Minato as a template, adding more feminine qualities. To be honest Minato would probably make a great woman…

"I'm sure he'll grow up to be just as pretty." Miyu said with a small laugh. Neji had begun to tug at Kurama's ears after he moved closer to look.

**_Brat,_** The fox grumbled as the child gripped harder.

"Hizashi-sensei, what happened after I collapsed on that mission, by the way?" Miyu wondered how they managed to get out, "Did I miss anything important?"

"Well, after Iruka activated the special summoning seal Minato created, he was transported via his Hiraishin. He went on a small scale massacre after seeing your state, and 'killed' nearly all of Sasori's army. Though, when he reached the puppeteer's body it turned out to be a very well made puppet. We don't know when he made the switch or if we were battling against a puppet the whole time but the whole thought is disconcerting."

**_To have been beaten by a mere puppet… We need a lot more training._** The fox had taken to waving his tail at the boy and watching him futilely try to catch it.

"Your condition was horrendous, and by all means anyone else would have been dead, but I guess that's where your healing factor kicks in. We were flashed to the hospital by Minato where they immediately placed you in surgery, but there was little they could do with your wounds constantly healing. In the end they set your bones, and flushed out as much poison as they could before leaving your body to do the rest." Iruka finished.

"So Sasori is still alive then." She was a bit unnerved by the Suna nin and would rather not face him and his zombies again. She knew he had been toying with her and had no desire to face him seriously.

"Yes, but there are a couple of pluses from that encounter." Hizashi added happily, "For one, we recovered many of our comrades' bodies and were able to give them a proper burial. Among that most Ninja controlled by Sasori had bounties on their head which we were able to pick up. Here," He tossed her a scroll, "That's your share from the ninja your fox took down. I would say I was envious of Minato's share but frankly I'm just going to spend the money on some good quality tea," He sighed happily, just thinking of the possibilities.

"Did anything else happen while I was asleep?" She asked, checking the scroll for its amount. She almost choked in surprise.

**_I think I did pretty well._** Ku was definitely proud of himself. It looked like they could splurge on weaponry now.

"More good news," Hizashi stated, "The war is finally over." A smile graced her face, one that was so bright it stunned the occupants of the room. That was marvellous news.

* * *

**A/N** Thanks for reading :D

So a short summary;

A rather depressing dream of Gaara (I love that tanuki~). I wonder who he'll be greeting for Shikamaru...take a guess, you'll find out soon enough...

Miyu wakes up from a two week coma (fun times) and Iruka is well on his way to becoming an intesnse dude. Rin...uh...dies (As bad as it sounds I feel like she needed to die. Miyu won't be able to save everyone).

If you didn't guess it, the souvenirs from Takumi are for Mikoto (Warm blooms), Rin (Comb) and Kushina (White blossoms). It doesn't play a very central part except for Rin's gift.

Kurama has somehow been put to the side for now in favour of the whole Sharingan ordeal and Hizashi is being a shifty yet very insightful shinobi. Miyu ended up fighting Sasori's puppet all along (right now it's like she has all the weapons and tools she needs but has too learn how to adequately harness them).

The war is over Woooh! And we get to see almost born Hinata and baby Neji (who will be a cute little prodigy). Hyuga Hitomi (named after her beautiful eyes, fitting for a Hyuga right?) is Hinata's mother. Her name also starts with a 'H', might as well keep the trend.

And now she also has adequate funds.

Kakashi and Miyu's relatinship is as distant as ever but I swear it'll change...when she's older...which will hopefully be within the next 4-ish chapters...

Well we'll just have to wait and see.

I look forward to reviews. Thanks for reading yet again.


	18. The Second Phase: October 10th

**A/N** Hi again :D

We've finally got up to the Kyuubi attack...yay...or maybe not so much.

And I still think it's every bit as anticlimactic as I expected. (NOTE: Naru doesn't even fight in this chapter...)

On another note I won't be posting/updating again until it hits mid November! BECAUSE EXAMS! So I'd like to thank you all in advance for you patience...

On another note, I'd like to give you all some food for thought. SUMMONS. Iruka will be getting some and for that we need... A POLL! Whooo. Hopefully by the time you've read this chapter, the poll for Iruka's summoning contract will be on my profile.

At the same time there will be a poll for Miyu, for whether she should get one or not. (NOTE: She won't be getting toads or foxes). It's really a yes or no thing. Yes She will get 4-6 unique summons (as in four to six creatures not hundreds of animals...think of a small contract). Or no, she won't get any at all ('Kurama and his furryness is enough'). Though I won't be telling you what exactly choosing 'yes' will entail.

Anyway, that's all I wanted to say so feel free to go ahead and read... (if you haven't already done so...)

* * *

**~Chapter 14 - THE SECOND PHASE: OCTOBER 10TH **

Kushina had been mothering Kakashi when she sensed a group of familiar chakra signals and went to open the door for them. She was greeted with an unreadable Miyu, impassive Kurama, melancholic Minato and a surprisingly solemn Jiraiya. With a sigh she waved them in, seating the group with Kakashi, and rolling up her sleeves. There was quite a lot of work to be done before she would be able to pull them all out of their depressing states.

* * *

In the aftermath of war, Kakashi had taken to visiting the memorial stone for twice as long, his reasoning being that he now had twice as many people to visit. Strangely enough, or maybe not so much, Miyu came with him, and they both just spent the time quietly staring at the many names. Kakashi usually alternated between looking at the stone, his right hand and then the girl. She hadn't once asked how Rin had died and he was in no hurry to tell her. Eventually her fox would pop out of some bushes, at exactly the same time each day, and she would leave for some youthful training. The Hatake would follow along and watch their ridiculous routine before then walking her back to the compound and then heading to Minato's apartment for breakfast. It was an odd fact that he now spent more time in his sensei's home than his own due to constantly being pulled in for meals, not that he was complaining…anymore that is.

And slowly their relationship changed from niece and student of Namikaze Minato to what could be considered friends.

"Kakashi, what will you be doing today?" Miyu asked the silver haired cyclops.

"Hm, training most likely." He answered as they walked to the Uchiha compound, "I won't be taking any missions for a while."

"Why?" The blonde asked, skipping ahead and then stopping to wait for him. Kurama was obviously displeased by her jerky gait, jumping off his partner and walking on his own.

"I might try to get into Anbu." There wasn't much else he could do unless he was content with his current position, "Minato-sensei is one of the Hokage candidates and he's likely to be picked. I think it would still be nice to work directly under him." He explained. The whole village hadn't been surprised when they had heard of Sarutobi's oncoming retirement. Now it was just a choice between the two candidates but for her there was really only one option.

"I don't like Orochimaru," It was considerably difficult for her not to spit out the name, and acting civil when she had first saw him with Jiraiya had been a challenge. Honestly she was confused on how he had turned out so twisted in the end.

"He does seem a bit off at times." More often than not the snake Sannin smelled like death to him, and not the type that came with their line of work. "Ah, we're here." It seemed the short walk was over to his disappointment. He liked talking to her, she was refreshing and understanding. At times it was nice to just talk, something he hadn't appreciated much before.

"Miyu-oneesan." Itachi came out to greet the duo, instantly grabbing the hem of his sister's clothes.

"Oh, Itachi, morning!" Miyu ruffled his hair, beaming at the cute pout. She couldn't exactly remember when he had become so close but thought it was about the same time Kakashi had begun walking her back.

"Good morning." Kakashi greeted with an almost unnoticeable frown.

"Good morning." Itachi replied slightly tense. With Miyu's attention focused on her younger sibling she missed the glare shared between both males, though the fox was pleasantly amused.

* * *

**3 Months later – July 23****rd****… Konoha Hospital**

"Please come back Miyu-san!" A frantic doctor shouted as he watched his patient dash down the hallway.

"Don't worry so much Takahashi-san." Miyu called back with a smile, "I'm fine." The fact her clothes were battle torn and covered in blood did not support her statement. Takahashi Michio relented with a sigh, he supposed if she was able to run that fast, then she wouldn't be dying anytime soon.

"Which way was it?" Miyu hit an intersection and choose right, smiling when she did indeed reach the correct room number. "Mikoto!" She entered the room loudly, surprising its occupants.

"Miyu," Fugaku gave her a disapproving look, "You shouldn't run or shout in the hospital. Nor should you cause Takahashi-san so much trouble." He added as an afterthought.

"Hai," Miyu said as his brief lecture went in one ear and out the other. She spotted her target on the bed and skipped over. "How are you doing, Mikoto?"

"Wonderfully." The woman was a bit paler than usual, with weariness easily visible on her face, though she did manage a weak smile, "If you want to meet him, he's with Itachi." She turned her attention to the boy seated beside his mother. A peaceful smile stretched across his usually stoic face. In his arms, sleeping peacefully despite all the commotion, was a beautiful and healthy baby boy.

"His name is Sasuke." Fugaku told her with his own rare smile.

"Sasuke." Miyu repeated, her eyes softening, "It's a good name."

"So, how are you?" Fugaku asked, jolting her out of her reverie. He checked her form, paying particular attention to any place near blood.

"I'm fine." Miyu replied, rubbing the blood on her arm off and showing him the unmarred skin, "Healing abilities remember."

"Hn." Fugaku nodded his approval and she smiled. He truly wasn't as bad as she had once imagined. A little callous and strict, sure, but he cared in his own way.

"Would you like to hold him?" Itachi asked, offering his younger brother to his sister, albeit reluctantly.

"Of course." Miyu eagerly accepted Sasuke, her arms moving into place automatically. She had gotten a lot of practice with babies these past few months. The blonde went out of her way, meeting and getting to know the people of Konoha, relishing in the new bonds she formed. She had fed younger Neji, held Tenten, chanced upon Lee, cooed over Shino, cuddled Choji, met Sakura and played with Kiba. Yet, there were still a handful of her friends yet to be born and even more she could not meet yet. She couldn't call herself fully content until she knew they were all safe and protected. Feeling a movement in her arms Miyu looked down and watched as Sasuke blearily open his eyes.

"Ohayo." She greeted with a foxy grin.

* * *

- - - - - _Dream_ - - - - -

"Temari! You look fantastic!" Sakura complimented, giving the Suna Kunoichi a hug. Instead of her usually flat stomach there was a small bulge on the blonde which added an appeal of its own.

"You aren't looking half bad either." Temari joked, smiling over at woman and her jumpsuit-wearing partner, "You two should get a move on too. I don't want to be the only fat one here." She earned herself a pretty blush from the pink haired woman and couple of laughs. Their Nara tactician fondly wrapped an arm around her waist before adding his own opinions into the mix.

"Maybe we should take this slowly," He suggested, "One pregnant woman is troublesome enough." All he got in return was a punch from his ever-loving wife. The mood was great and soon enough the friendly chatter grew to a full blown shouting match.

"I'm going to be an uncle." Naru turned her attention back to her close friend who seemed to be worrying more than anyone else, though it hardly showed on his impassive face.

"So you are." She agreed, listening as Lee's voice rose up above the rest, "And you will be a great one at that."

"But-" The redhead didn't have much confidence and his experience with his own uncle hadn't helped any.

"Gaara," The sunny blonde turned to his with a wide grin, "You'll be fine, you'd be surprised how many kids we have over here that admire you." She caught the small look of surprise on his face and continued, "You're not a monster Gaara, no matter what happened in the past. Instead you're the Kazekage and most likely the youngest ever Kage. It's their honour to be your niece even if things may be a bit awkward in the beginning." Gaara was definitely relieved by her words. If Naru said it was okay then he would believe in her. After all she had his absolute trust.

"Thank you." He said sincerely, appreciating the small boost of confidence. Though, at the same time something else caught his attention, "So, you said niece…"

"Ah!" Naru jumped up and exaggeratedly slapped her hands over his mouth, "Shhh! You didn't hear that! At least not from me!" His brow quirked in amusement, prompting her to explain. "It seems Kurama it good at sensing chakra, or life for this matter and since she's already a couple of months along he was able to determine the gender. But make sure to keep it quiet you hear!"

"Keep what quiet?" The heir of both Namikaze and Uzumaki jumped as she was startled by another's silent approach.

"Kashi!" She beamed and received a warm hug from the silver haired male, "We weren't expecting you for at least another hour!"

"Maa, maa, I'm not that bad." The Cyclops waved off the incredulous looks at his last statement.

"I recall not even an important meeting with myself and the other Kages could get you to arrive on time, Hatake." Gaara added in a bland tone.

"Ah, really?" Kakashi rubbed the back of his head, apparently having no recollections of such an event. "So what did I miss?"

"Nothing much." Sakura answered, walking up to greet her sensei, "Everyone was just getting settled in." She was rather relaxed despite her fiancé's boisterous shouting and attempts to exercise.

"I see." His visible eye curved upwards watching the younger generations antics and catching a few of the older ninja spread throughout the room.

"KAKASHI!" Why he ever thought he'd have a moment of peace was beyond him. The copy ninja sighed and resigned himself to his fate as his eternal rival bounded up to him.

"I think I'll leave you two be…" Naru said, sliding out from under his arm as Konoha's Green Beast eagerly skipped towards them.

"How cruel you are, to abandon me in my time of need," He cried dramatically, though she laughed it off, and grabbed her left hand. "How I ever fell in love with you is beyond me." He brought the smaller hand up and pressed a mask-covered kiss to the silver band that wrapped around her fourth finger.

"Isn't it obvious?" Naru asked as he released her, "It's clearly because of my beauty, charm, fun personality, skills as a kunoichi and…" She trailed off with a playful smile though something a bit more sensual lay in her eyes.

"And?" Kakashi prompted, right as Gai reached him.

"Well, I'll have to show you later on tonight now won't I?" Naru left him speechless, a feat she had mastered over the years, and quickly pulled Gaara away with her to dance. Her husband couldn't feel jealous at all, not after what he had just been promised.

- - - - - _Reality_ - - - - -

* * *

**3 Months later – Early October…night before the Kyuubi attack**

A faded red leaf drifted down from the treetops onto and small palm, belonging to a small girl with her arm outstretched. The small hand closed around the leaf crumpling it before letting it fall to the ground.

**_So are you sure of our plan._** Kurama asked, wondering if their reckless actions could even be considered as such.

"Yes," Miyu replied, "As long as I can convince 'you' to stop it should be fine. But I wonder what will happen if both Kyuubi no Kitsune clash with one another. You told me before that two of the same people cannot exist at the same time."

**_I am not sure,_** it was strange to hear the fox sound so worried, **_currently, due to Namikaze's sealing method, I am but the Yang half of my former self. I am incomplete so theoretically there should be no problem but…_**

"I see." She was sure it would result in his death, or non-existence to be exact.

**_So what happens if this plan of yours fails? What is the back-up?_** He asked.

"If I cannot stop 'you' then I will perform to sealing." She said with resolve, "I will offer my life to the Shinigami and seal this timeline's Kyuubi into the baby that will be born. That child will grow up with a strong mother, a father that will rule righteously and a demon fox to guide him. It is more than I had and hopefully it will be enough. Of course, if I offer my soul you'll have to come with me." She rubbed the back of her head and offered the fox a sheepish grin.

**_I had resolved to follow you till the end of your short life. It will be sooner than I expected but I am content._** Kurama stated softly, **_besides you will probably need company inside his stomach, it must be pretty boring do you not suppose?_**

"I wonder if he's nice." She contemplated, "The Shinigami I mean."

**_I hope we need not to find out, but I do not think he could be too bad._** He answered. Miyu sat silently in thought. Tomorrow she would be born and that was the same day many were destined to die, including Minato and Kushina. They had already moved to a secure location with a midwife team and a handful of Anbu. It wouldn't be enough. While she knew the location, Miyu was required to remain within the walls of Konoha, or at least her clone was bound to. Tomorrow was her free day so hopefully Hizashi would not see her and wouldn't become suspicious.

"It's here." Miyu stated, standing atop a tree that overlooked the small houses that held the newlywed couple and their attendants.

**_Now, we must wait._** Kurama sniffed the air, stretching his senses over the wide area. They wouldn't be caught unaware, not after all their preparations.

* * *

**_There he is._** Kurama noted. Miyu brought her attention to the hooded, masked ninja sneaking into the house. With a slight sadness she watched him dispose of the Anbu, making no move to help. It would do no good alerting him. At the moment she knew how the story went and how he would act. She wouldn't jeopardize the safety of those more important than her by trying to save everyone and most likely failing. No, instead she would wait. She could guarantee three lives at the sacrifice of four. It would have to do.

**_He is moving_**, Kurama alerted, jumping onto her shoulders as she followed from an undetectable distance. In the enemy ninja's arms was worn out Kushina, who was currently using all her energy to restrain the Kyuubi. That in turn meant Minato had taken Naruto to safety. She followed him all the way to a series of rocks which were covered in intricate seals.

"What… do you want?" She heard Kushina grit out as she was placed on a smaller stone, and bound with the seals.

"To take the Kyuubi from you," the masked man responded, "And to destroy Konoha." Miyu ignored his short rant and focused on Kushina as the extraction began. The red haired woman let out a silent scream under the excruciating pain as the fox was forcefully pulled out from her.

"GRAAAWRR!" The beast was out, howling at the sky.

**_I look strong._** The smaller fox noted.

"So you do." Miyu agreed.

"Alright," The man looked straight at the released Bijuu, "Now, head for Konoha."

"Ugh…wait." Kushina called weakly, gaining his attention once more.

"The Uzumaki clan really is amazing," The man remarked, "Still alive after having the Bijuu ripped from you, eh?"

"Grrrrr…" The fox let out an unpleasant growl.

"You were the Kyuubi's host, and now I will use him to kill you." As the words left his mouth a furred hand came down in the exact spot where she laid. The enraged fox's muzzle looked up where his prey had vanished, now in the arms of a fearless blond. "It's too late." The masked man intoned as Konoha's Yellow Flash disappeared, prioritizing his wife's safety. He wasn't far behind, teleporting to Konoha, unknowing of the girl that followed.

* * *

Miyu waited. She had waited for the fox to be extracted, she had waited for him to be summoned into the village and she had waited for Minato to be lured away by the masked man. He would be able to defeat him while she currently couldn't, and in turn she would stop the rampaging fox.

"Who?!" Sarutobi stepped back as an unrecognizable ninja appeared in front of him. It was a kunoichi with long blonde hair and a completely blank, white mask on her face, showing only the red of her eyes.

**"Get out of here."** He heard her order with a guttural voice. Sarutobi managed to catch a glimpse of her gaze, his own eyes widening at the sight of feral slitted pupils.

"This is Konohagakure, and my home." The former Hokage stated, holding his kunai a fraction tighter while sizing her up, "I will stand and fight to protect it." The ninja with him shouted their approval.

**"And so you shall, but unless you wish to die, allow me to speak with him."** She didn't wait for the answer and walked up to the fox who was still thrashing around, despite no longer being under control.

"RRAAWR!" Within an instant she hand grabbed him and teleported elsewhere.

**"Kurama!"** The kunoichi called, acquiring the demon fox's attention, **"Do you hear me?" **The fox halted recognizing his own name. A name he knew he had not given to any humans. **"Do you hear us?"** the woman repeated. He turned to stare down the mere human that dare call him, growling all the while. **"Good."** She answered.

* * *

When Minato had finally tracked down the Kyuubi he was met with a scene completely unexpected. There was a woman, the one his predecessor the Sandaime had mentioned, sitting beside the snout of the nine-tailed fox deep in conversation with it. Said beast growled in warning as the newcomer approached, but otherwise seemed to be expecting him.

**"It's time,"** He heard the woman say as she stood up and dusted herself off before asking one final question to the fox, **"What is your decision?" **There was a movement from the beast, a slow but definite nod. Satisfied, she finally turned her attention to the young Hokage.

"Who are you?" He asked the woman. She merely looked at him and Minato had to admit that the blank mask was slightly more unnerving than a patterned one.

**"No one important."** Miyu answered slowly, **"Instead I would like to borrow your child."** Minato was instantly on guard. The attack on his family and village had made him wary.

"Why?" He let her identity slide. After all, dangerous or not, she had stopped the fox subsequently saving Konoha.

**"The fox and I have come to an agreement."** She answered,** "He is willing to be resealed under my terms. Your wife is too weak to accept him again and it would most likely kill her, and anyone that is not an infant, will die due to his chakra affecting the already developed chakra systems."**

"If that is the case I'll be the one to do the sealing." Minato stated. He struggled slightly, with the decision of his child's fate, though he couldn't say the stranger's suggestion was new to his thoughts.

**"That's fine."** Miyu allowed, much to his surprise,** "But you will use this seal"** She rolled out a scroll laying the pattern down for him to inspect. It was ingenious and very familiar. **"Go explain to your wife, and bring whatever you need." **She watched him nod and disappear.

**_"And you promise I will get my revenge? That this will be my last host?"_** A deep voice questioned behind her. Miyu turned to the Kyuubi who chose to speak only in her presence.

**"I promise, and foxes keep their words."** He accepted her vow and quietened once again as Minato reappeared, this time followed by the Sandaime and Konoha's last Sannin. It was only to be expected.

"I never thought I would see the Kyuubi not wreaking havoc." Jiraiya said, observing the unknown kunoichi.

**"Please don't antagonize him."** Miyu requested with a sigh. She saw Minato holding a bundle of cloth with a smiling baby and merely stared at the strangeness of it all. Here she existed in two places at once. Maybe Kurama had been mistaken?

"Alright then." Minato carried his child over, flanked by his two trusted companions. The fox barely even moved as he felt a hand rest on his fur. "Seal!" As promised the Kyuubi offered no resistance, and was sealed within his spawn. "It's done." He uttered in amazement.

"A perfect sealing." Jiraiya commented, checking over the seal that had manifested on the baby's stomach. The Sandaime turned to offer his gratitude to the stranger only to find nothing but air where the woman had once stood.

"She's gone." Both seal masters focused their attention on their missing helper. Minato caught a glimpse of white and moved his attention down to the ground where the shattered remains of a mask remain. How she had done it all without them noticing was undoubtedly a testament to her skills as a ninja.

* * *

**_That went well,_** Kurama remarked sleepily, carried in the girl's arms. Going in and out of his jinchuriki's seal took a toll on him, making him feel rather tired.

"Maybe a bit too well." Miyu muttered quietly, though she wouldn't take it for granted. Pushing a small amount of chakra into her legs she jumped, landing on the next rooftop. At the moment the younger shinobi were gathered in a safe area, until they were released she would not be able to switch with her clone.

**_Aside from a few dozen injured and a section of the village destroyed, there was no further damage as far as I have observed._** Kurama noted, sensing a wave of relief through the girl.

"No casualties?" She questioned softly.

**_None so far, _**the fox answered,**_ but there are a few who have been seriously harmed. _**Miyu could live with that, at least with the medics doing their jobs, there would be no lost lives.

"Good." She sighed and searched for a place to remain for the night, hoping she wouldn't have to resort to the Forest of Death.

**_It seems my alternate self was very accepting._** The fox commented. Then again, one would have to be when confronted with something undeniably true.

"I only hope he and Naruto can come to terms. You actually quite a nice fox, deep down inside." She laughed as her partner shivered in disgust.

**_That is almost insulting,_** he growled back,**_ I am the great Kyuubi no Kitsune. A demon fox is anything but nice._**

"Kind then," Miyu teased, "And cute too." She rubbed the back of his ear and he let out an uncontrollable purr.

**_You do not play fair…_** He muttered, succumbing to the feeling of her fingers in his fur. **_…A little to the left…_**

"Of course 'O Great One'" She obliged and mover her hand, listening to the rumbling intensify. "By the way, I thought you said that you couldn't exist in the same place at once?" The questioning had been troubling her more than she thought it would.

**_You cannot. I have explained the reasoning behind myself but as for you, you are still yourself. It is this you which has changed._** Miyu was sure he couldn't have been more confusing if he tried. **_Just let it be, or as you humans say, go with the flow. You will find your answers soon enough…_**

* * *

**A/N** Thanks for reading :D

I kinda rushed this chapter so please let me know if you find any errors and I'll correct them. Thanks.

So in this chapter we get to see the beginning of a petty (almost subconscious) rivalry between Kakashi and Itachi for Miyu's attention ahaha.

Also Sasuke is born (You can bet having an older half-sister is going to affect him)

There's also another flashback with pregnant Temari married to Shikamaru. (In the scene last chapter Gaara was talking about saying hello to his deceased wife and unborn daughter... I might need another flashback showing his Shikamaru's...despair...)

Ah, Sakura and Lee are a thing... but that's not necessarily true for this time around. In fact I was planning to pair Lee with someone else (feel free to guess :D)

And at that point Kakashi and Naru were already married :)

The Kyuubi incident played out languidly. Basically because Miyu knew exactly what happened an when. Seeing as in the canon Tobi was defeated by Minato she handled the fox. Sorry if it was all a bit ooc.

Anyway, the poll will be open until the next time I post a chapter (a couple of months maximum)

As always, I hope to see you all next time.  
~Obs


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